The Girl Who Had His Love & the One Who Has it Now
by Nox Aeterna13
Summary: Kikyo and Kagome have a surprising confrontation, which opens the door to a whole bunch of new complications for the group, particularly Kagome. How will this affect Inuyasha and Kagome's relationship? InuKag, but not a Kikyo hating story
1. The Confrontation

A/N: This is kind of an Inu/Kag/Kik story, but there are mainly Inu/Kagome moments. Kikyo fans, you've been warned about the pairings, but this is NOT a Kikyo hating story like a lot of them are. I respect her and though she is slightly OOC in my story, it isn't such a bad thing. This is my first fanfic, so please be kind with you're reviews. Of course critisism is welcomed, but please don't be rude about it. I do have a vague idea of where this story is going, though how it's going to get there is entirely unknown to me. This thing is sort of writing itself.

Dislaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or his friends, but I will one day if I have anything to say about it -evil laugh-

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The two mikos stood, eyes and arrows locked on one another.

"You dare to challenge me, foolish girl?" the more reserved one inquired.

The other priestess, who was dressed in a strange and rather inappropriate kimono, especially for a miko, thought to herself, 'Sure you may be better than me, but I cannot allow you to come between me and the one I love any longer!'

"That's right!" she finally retorted, pulling her bow a little more taunt.

"Fine, your death wish has been acknowledged," she said coldly, with almost an expressionless face. "Do you honestly think you can win against me?"

"Honestly, I don't know," a little sadness filling her eyes. She shook it off, "but I've got to try!"

"Why, because you _love_ him?" she mocked, slightly emphasizing the word. "Baka, your death won't help you to find a place in his heart, except in the same place his mother and I reside; the part that regrets not being able to save the ones he cares about." She watched as her words brought a look of shock and compassion in the eyes of her reincarnation, who proceeded to shake them away.

"Do not underestimate me!" she yelled, a hint of a tear lurking in her eye.

"Oh, it's true you possess great powers, I would know seeing as how they're the same as mine, but don't fool yourself. You don't have nearly as much practice and discipline as I do," she smirked.

The oddly dressed miko was about to respond when she heard a yell in the distance.

"KA-GO-ME!"

"Inuyasha," she whispered.

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A red blur could be seen streaking through the forest at inhuman speeds, that is if anyone were actually there to witness it. If a good glimpse was ever caught, one would find him to be a dog hanyou known as Inuyasha, with long silver hair and two dog ears sitting on top of his head.

The hanyou let loose another yell. "KA-GO-ME!"

Inuyasha had picked up on her scent and it was getting stronger. He had picked up another scent as well, one that troubled him slightly, "…and Kikyo," he whispered barely audible. He started to run even faster.

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"If you truly intend to do this, Kagome, you'd best attack now. If Inuyasha arrives we won't get the chance to finish this."

Kagome swallowed hard, 'Do I really intend to do this?' she asked herself, having second thoughts.

'Of course, Kikyo's keeping you from Inuyasha!'

'But what if it's not really her between us? What if he just doesn't feel that way about me?'

'Come on, there are so many signs that he does! Have you forgotten that kiss? He kissed you back, remember?'

'But that was just to keep him from transforming.'

'You know it meant more to you than that. Besides, he also protects you with his life, eagerly waits for you when you go home, and gets jealous of Koga.'

The battle of her inner thoughts waged on. 'But what if this makes him hate me? After all, he loved Kikyo once, and probably still does.'

'You'll be setting them free; Kikyo to where she belongs and Inuyasha to be able to love again.'

'He could still love me, even with Kikyo alive.'

'Do you want to take that chance?'

'Yes, I don't know what's gotten into me. I would never do something as cruel and stupid as killing Kikyo.'

Kikyo interrupted her thoughts. "I see you are faltering with your decision. Perhaps…"

Just then Inuyasha burst into the clearing, stopping to stare at the two, bows at the ready.

"Kikyo? Kagome? What's going on?" His glance switched between the two women.

Kagome's heart sank. He'd said Kikyo's name first.

"I see you're late as always, Inuyasha." Kikyo said, shifting her gaze to him.

"I'm gonna say it again, what the hell is going on here!"

"Inuyasha, I um…" Kagome began very quietly, avoiding his stare.

"What is it Kagome?" he asked softly. "Did you try to hurt her again?" he barked at Kikyo, his eyes flashing with rage. Kikyo had tried it before, but he thought that was behind them.

"How quickly you jump to conclusions, Inuyasha. Perhaps you should ask your helpless little Kagome why she sought me out."

"Kagome?" Inuyasha almost whimpered with a confused look on his face.

"I'm sorry for worrying you leaving without telling you," she stalled, searching for how to say it, still avoiding eye contact. 'There is no way tot ell him; he's gonna hate me.' Her eyes teared up.

"Forget it," he said. "Now tell me why you tried to find Kikyo," he added sternly.

"Please don't hate me!" she wailed, lowering her bow to her side. "I don't know what I was thinking. I would never do what I came here to do, not in a million years!" She fell into a kneeling position.

Inuyasha's face wore a worried and slightly angry expression. "What exactly did you come here to do?"

Kagome looked up with sad eyes and a pleading smile. "Do you have to make me say it?" Her smile faded and a lone tear rolled down her cheek. "Can't you tell by what you saw when you got here?"

Kikyo had lowered her bow shortly after Kagome had, knowing the young girl had returned to her usual self. She watched the two, then slowly began to walk away. She had barely left the clearing when a distraught Inuyasha caught up with her.

She sighed, "What do you want with me?"

"I want to know what Kagome did…and apologize for jumping to conclusions."

"Do not punish the girl for the actions of her heart. As far as she got was pointing her arrow at me. We exchanged a few words before her inner conflict intervened and she acted as the sweet innocent Kagome you know." After a short pause she added in a hushed voice, "…and love."

Inuyasha stood mouth agape in shock. "K-K-Kikyo?"

"You look surprised, Inuyasha," she said with a faint smile. "Is it really that unnerving for me to show compassion?" Before he could answer she continued. "The heart makes one do strange things, Inuyasha, like going against one's natural behavior or staying somewhere one doesn't belong." Inuyasha's eyes lit up slightly. "Don't look like that. I wasn't referring to you. My heart longs to reach out and help people, as I once did when I was truly alive. The same applies for Kagome, you know."

Inuyasha looked at her in shock. "What do ya mean by that?"

"Baka, she practically lives here in our time, but we both know she doesn't really belong. I think she knows it too. People can sense when they're out of place. One day when my heart accepts that I shall return to hell…Do you still intend to come with me Inuyasha?"

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A/N: Hope ya'll enjoyed it. I'm looking for someone to beta-read for me. I'm pretty good with spelling and grammer, but one tends to get lost in their own story after writing then reading it so many times. Also sometimes it's hard to tell if things flow well and make sense to people that don't know what's going on inside my head when I wrote it. Anyways, if you're interested, put it in a review or send a message. If anyone else is looking for a beta-reader, I'd be glad to help. Like I said, I'm good with spelling, grammer, etc.when it comes to _other_ people's stories. I've talked for too long. The next chapter's already written, so it should be up shortly.


	2. The Reasons

**A/N: I don't own Inuyasha, but I enjoy manipulating the characters in my fanfic!**

**Oh japanese words:**

**Mikopriestess**

**Bakastupid or idiot**

**Hanyouhalf-demon**

**Houshi-samamonk**

Kagome sat bawling in the clearing. She picked up her bow and ran towards the well, toward home, only to run into Miroku, Sango, and Shippo.

"Kagome!" they all shouted in unison.

Shippo rushed to her a hopped up on her shoulder. "Why are you crying? Did Inuyasha do something stupid again?"

"No, Shippo, this time I'm the one to blame."

All three gave her puzzled looks before she burst into tears again. Sango rushed forward and gave her dear friend a consoling hug. "Now, now Kagome. Let's go back to Kaede's hut so you can calm down and tell us what happened."

Just then Miroku got a brilliant idea. He eased forward to join the hug, placing a hand on each of the two girls' lovely butts, giving them a squeeze. He smiled in delight.

"MIROKU!" Sango yelled. Kagome simply screamed, flinging her arms into the air as she did so, sending Shippo flying. A loud slap resonated throughout the forest, leaving silence in its wake.

Miroku reached up, stroking the burning slap mark Sango had given him on his cheek.

"Ahh…It was worth it," he sighed while looking at his two fuming female companions. "I just couldn't resist," he said waving his hands defensively out in front of him.

"You're hopeless!" Sango exclaimed, exasperated.

Shippo just shook his head and sighed. "Stupid lecher, he'll never learn."

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Inuyasha just stared at Kikyo. After a moment he finally spoke. "I made a promise, didn't I? I intend to fulfill it and keep my word and honor."

"That's one of the most foolish things I've ever heard, Inuyasha. Offering to go to Hell with someone and give up everything just because of a promise made long ago. People change. That's something you need to learn." She saw the look on his face. "Don't worry, I don't intend to stop you if you still want to come, but I also will forgive you if you've changed your mind."

"Kikyo, what's gotten into you; what are you saying?"

"I've come to terms with a lot of things. Inuyasha, I am dead. There's nothing I can do for you here in this world, which is why I've tried to take you to Hell with me. I fear, however, that still wouldn't be enough. You see, our time to be together has passed and can't be retrieved in any world. Besides, haven't you ever questioned our relationship? Were we really in love or had we just found another being in this world who actually understood what it was like to be us."

Inuyasha's gaze focused on the ground, contemplating all she'd just said. 'Actually, I wonder about that all the time,' he thought to himself. He was surprised when Kikyo spoke again.

"There _is_ someone who loves, you know. She's still alive and can give you the things I never could. She even loves you in more ways than I could and she completely accepts you."

Inuyasha nodded, knowing who she was talking about.

"My soul can finally be in peace, Inuyasha, and you can live a happy life as well. Besides, Kagome and my souls are one in the same, although were two different people, I'd like to think that somehow, you'll be with both of us, even if I'm just lurking in some hidden corner of the woman you truly love."

Their eyes locked, having finally reached an understanding allowing them to move on with their lives.

"I must return to my village now, Inuyasha, but remember one thing for me, okay?"

He nodded his head, indication he would.

"Embrace life with all you've got, before it's taken away from you and the moment's gone forever. She tuned around and walked away, the tears that filled her eyes threatening to fall. "Fare well, Inuyasha."

"Hai. Good bye Kikyo. I'll never forget you." Inuyasha muttered with somewhat moist eyes, to the miko's form slowly disappearing into the trees. He sat replaying the events of the last hour, wondering if they'd really happened. His thoughts were disrupted by screams followed by a loud slap.

"That Miroku, at it again. I guess I'd better head back, but what am I gonna say to Kagome?"

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Now in Kaede's hut, after walking there from the well, Kaede, Shippo, Miroku, Sango, and Kagome sat in a circle around the fire. Kilala was curled up in Kagome's lap with Sango to her right, her hand comfortingly placed on her shoulder.

"Kagome, ye say ye sought out my sister Kikyo to bring on her demise? What were ye reasons and did ye succeed?"

Kagome sniffling, "I was just thinking about how Inuyasha's always running off to be with her and how I don't even think he realizes how much I…I…"

"Oh, come on Kagome. _We_ all know it so you might as well say it." Miroku bluntly stated.

"Fine, how much I love him. So, before I even really realized what I was doing, I grabbed my bow and arrows and set off in search of Kikyo with thoughts of ridding her from our lives filling my mind. Kaede, everyone, I truly am ashamed of even thinking about such a thing, not that I'd ever accomplish it."

"My sister is no longer alive. True a portion of her soul dwells in an imitation clay body fashioned after her own, but she is no longer the Kikyo I knew fifty years ago. Though I don't think ye killing her would be a wise solution, I will be happy when her soul is in peace in its true resting place. That being said, continue on with the story without the need for further apologies."

Kagome sat thinking about Kaede's words before being reminded she had more to say by a friendly squeeze on her shoulder. She looked back at Sango who gave her a warm smile.

"Well, I ran into her in the forest after about an hour or two. I'd heard she had just been in the village we passed through yesterday, so I knew she'd be close by. I started talking to her but she blew me off like she usually does. I don't guess she likes to talk to me. I guess it's because she sort of resents me for having her soul and the life she could have had, I dunno. Anyways, I raised my bow, arrow poised ready to be fired, thinking that the only way to be with Inuyasha would be to get Kikyo out of our lives. She raised her bow in retaliation, asking if I dared to challenge her. We exchanged more words. While doing so I slowly became more rational. My thoughts collided in my head and I was about to put a stop to things when Inuyasha burst in."

"Oh no," Sango interrupted. "Then is he off thinking things over right now?"

Kagome's dry eyes filled with tears again. "Well, when he got there he'd thought Kikyo tried to hurt me again, but she told him I'd come looking for her. When he asked me why, I couldn't bear to say it, so I basically told him to figure it out himself. Kikyo left and Inuyasha followed her. I ran off and that's when I bumped into you guys on my way to the well." She covered her face with her hands and through muffled sobs said, "I don't know what I was thinking; I'd never ever do that!"

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Inuyasha arrived at Kaede's hut, surprised to hear Kagome's voice inside.

'Baka,' he thought to himself. 'I was so deep in thought I didn't even notice Kagome's scent.' He was about to go inside when he heard something that made his heart skip a beat.

"I don't even think he realizes how much I…I…"

"Oh, come on Kagome. _We_ all know it so you might as well say it." Miroku bluntly stated.

"Fine, how much I love him."

Inuyasha's eyes grew big. He edged around the corner of the hut and sat down. 'Kagome loves me? I can't believe it.' He thought to himself in disbelief. 'I'd always hoped that…so then all those times it wasn't just my imagination? She really was trying to show me how much she cared?'

He sat listening to the rest of her explanation. When it seemed like it was over, her stood up, wiped the shocked but happy look off his face, and laid a hand on the cloth that covered the doorway to Kaede's hut.

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"Oh, Kagome," Sango whispered giving her a big hug. "I know you'd never do that."

Miroku laid a hand on her shoulder, with only pure intentions. "As do the rest of…"

He was interrupted by Inuyasha appearing in the doorway. All eyes fell on him. His eyes scanned the room. He looked away and found a seat in a dark corner, avoiding their stares, as usual after a Kikyo run in. He could feel five pairs of eyes boring into him. Only Kagome kept her eyes averted.

"Keh. Would ya'll quit staring at me already!" he growled.

Their gazes scattered and the room fell into heavy silence.

"So, Inuyasha, I take it ye spoke with my sister. How is she?" Kaede coolly inquired while removing a pot from the fire.

Inuyasha stood. "She's returning to her village." He left without another word to find a tree to think in. He found the Sacred Tree and decided it was as good as any.

"Keh. I should have known better than to go in there." He looked up at the sky. "Damn, the new moon is tomorrow night. As if things aren't bad enough around here. My emotions go crazy when I'm a pathetic human."

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Back in the hut, "He hates me!" Kagome sobbed, tears streaming down her face.

"He doesn't hate you, he just needs time to think things over." Sango comforted. "Right Miroku?"

"Ah, my beautiful Sango has a point." This caused him to receive a death glare from Sango as if to say, 'This is hardly the time.' He got a sweat drop and continued. "Inuyasha's so simple-minded; his brain is probably on overload right now."

"Thanks guys, but I just need to go home right now."

"Kagome…" Sango pleaded as Kagome walked out the door. She started to get up to follow, but Miroku grabbed her arm.

"Perhaps it's best just to let her go."

"You're probably right."


	3. Interesting Encounters

A/N: I hope ya'll have enjoyed this story so far. I'm still looking for someone to beta-read. I think I'm pretty good about catching mistakes, but you never can tell. Thanks to those of you who reviewed, I was hoping for more than 3 though. Please review to tell me what you think, good or bad. I'd really like to know what ya'll think, things I've done good or improvements.

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but a girl can dream. Now for the story.

On the other side of the well, in modern day Japan, Kagome Higurashi exited the all too familiar well house. She crossed the courtyard to her house, head bowed and tears cascading down her face. She stopped at the back door, wanting to collect herself so as not to alarm her family. She took a deep breath, wiped the tears from her eyes, and opened the door.

"Mom, Grandpa, Souta! I'm home!" she hollered, trying to sound as cheerful as possible. She was mildly satisfied with her attempt. "Hmm…no one answered. I wonder if they're not home."

She dropped her bag and went into the kitchen where she found a note laying on the counter written in her mom's handwriting. It read:

Dear Kagome,

Your uncle was put in the hospital last week, but don't worry, he's going to be just fine. Your aunt asked us to come visit them in light of all that's happened. I was inclined to wait until you got back, but she really wanted us to come. We weren't sure how long you'd be gone so we decided to go. Sorry if we miss you! Be safe and we'll be back in a couple of weeks.

Love,

Mom, Grandpa, and Souta

P.S. I almost forgot, I made some lunches for you and your friends, they're in the fridge. There's plenty of ramen in the pantry, too.

The last line made her eyes tear up, but she refused to let them fall. She didn't really mind that they were gone. It avoided having questions asked, plus she could be alone.

Kagome sighed and walked up to her room. She plopped down on her bed, catching a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes got big as she leaned in for a closer look.

"Eek! I need a bath! I can't believe Inuyasha saw me like this." She blushed. "Not that he looks at me like that. I'm just his stupid shard detector. No wonder he doesn't want me, if this is what he sees." She sighed.

She grabbed a change of clothes and went into the bathroom. She had just turned on the water when her stomach growled; well it was more of a roar really.

"Maybe I'll grab a bite to eat first." She shut off the water and ran downstairs.

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"Grrrrr!" Inuyasha growled. "Who the hell do they think they are! Making _me_ feel like I'm the one who did something wrong. Keh, I'll show them," he said after having a revelation. He leapt down from his tree and sprang off to Kaede's hut.

He burst through the entrance to the hut, startling his traveling companions, except for Shippo who was sound asleep and didn't even stir.

'Some youkai you are,' Inuyasha grumbled to himself upon noticing Shippo's lack of awareness of his environment.

"Inuyasha, what are ye doing back so soon?"

"Yes, I figured you'd be long gone to Kagome's time by now," the monk nonchalantly stated.

"Why would I do that?" His tone of voice implied that Miroku was the stupidest guy around.

Inuyasha sniffed, realizing that Kagome's scent was old. "Oh," was all he could mutter.

"You mean it's taken you _this_ long to realize she left to go home?" Sango exclaimed, rising into a kneeling position. Big mistake. She got an anime vein as her hands balled into fists at her side.

"Houshi-sama…" she growled. She landed a loud smack to his head with one of her fists. Miroku landed with a thud as his fell over from her blow.

"Dear Sango, you're so beautiful when you're angry," the monk sighed still dazed from the impact.

Sango merely rolled her eyes, but couldn't help letting a slight smirk come to her lips after she turned away from him. 'To be honest, I eagerly await his regular groping.'

Inuyasha waited for the usual scene to finish before he spoke as if nothing had happened. "It's almost the new moon; my senses get less acute as it draws nearer," he answered matter-of-factly, as though it should be common knowledge.

Miroku, now fully recovered, was already scheming as to how he should approach his next attempt. 'Ah well, I always think of something,' he reassured himself with a smile.

"So, Inuyasha, when _will_ you be going to Kagome's era?"

The hanyou fell over in dismay. "What for! I didn't do anything wrong!"

"I never said you did, but Lady Kagome feels far too much guilt to return on her own. You're the only one able to go to her. Please for all of our sakes, give her the courage to come back."

Inuyasha gaped at him. "Keh, why should I care if she comes back?" He crossed his arms and huffed.

Sango cut in, "Inuyasha, even if you won't admit it, you need Kagome as much as we do. If you won't do it for your sake, will you do for us what we're unable to do ourselves?" Her eyes pleaded with him.

'Damn these strengthened human emotions.'

"Keh, I just came back to yell at ya'll for trying to make me feel guilty earlier…umm…you know how I feel about sleeping indoors, so I'm gonna go find a tree. Later."

With that he sped out the door to go back to his thinking tree.

"What do ye think?"

"Totally going to get Kagome." Sango smirked at their success.

"I completely agree, dear Sango," his hand inching closer to her lovely "curves".

"Don't even think about it Miroku!"

"Too late for that warning."

"Monk!" That one sent him down for the count.

Kaede and Sango prepared for sleep, Kilala curling up with her beloved master.

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"Keh, see if I care. I ain't gonna go get her when I didn't do anything wrong."

'But you do care.'

'Maybe, but I still ain't goin.'

'What if she doesn't return?'

His thoughts turned into images of what life would be like without Kagome.

"Hmmph." He burrowed further into the tree, eyes shut tight.

Moments later he cracked open one eye. After making sure no on was watching, he darted for the well.

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"Mmmm…That was great. Way better than I've had in ages!" She sighed, remembering fondly the fish Inuyasha usually made for dinner when they ran out of "ninja food" and ramen.

She ran upstairs and again ran water for her bath. Satisfied with the temperature, she put in the stopper and let the water continue to fill the tub, turning it off just before it reached the point where it would over flow once Kagome got in.

She slipped out of her dirty uniform, tossing it aside, then piled her hair in a messy bun on top of her head. She climbed into the warm bath and sighed. She sat for a long time, letting the bath's warmth relax her tense muscles.

"I wonder what Inuyasha's doing."

Not liking where her thoughts were going she shook him from her mind, removing the clip that held her hair in place as she did so. Her onyx hair cascaded around her. She grabbed shampoo and slowly lathered it in her hair. It felt so nice, so clean. She rinsed and followed with conditioner. Once her cleansing was complete, she wrung out her hair and returned it to the clip. She pulled the plug, allowed the water to slowly drain away. She stepped out of the bath, water dripping everywhere, in search of a towel.

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Inuyasha leapt out of the well and headed for Kagome's house.

"Like it or not I do have to talk to her about…stuff," his voice trailed off.

He followed her scent into the house and up the stairs. 'Why's her scent so strong, despite my weakening senses?' He shuddered. 'If only she knew how much her intoxicating scent drives me wild.' He shook the thought away, regaining his composure. He reached for the door knob of the room he'd tracked her to. He gave it a quick turn and barged in, remembering exactly what room it was as he entered.

A very naked Kagome screamed as an equally shocked hanyou burst into the room. She desperately tried to cover herself with her hands, looking for _anything_ to hide herself behind.

'Oh shit. I'm gonna get sat to the other side of the world for this.'

He drank in the sight of her bare, creamy flesh and the way her scent enveloped him. Her extraordinary black hair gathered together on her head, locks escaping here and there. 'She's absolutely…radiant, ravishing, enticing, elegantly beautiful…' All these words and many more filled his mind. He decided the sits would be worth it. 'Heh. Great. Now I'm starting to sound like the monk.'

Kagome watched as his look of shock turned into a daze as his eyes scanned her body.

"Inuyasha?" she said in that tone that sweetly wondered what in the hell he was doing. She blushed as she silently asked the heavens, 'Why couldn't I have found a towel?'

'You know you like that he's taken an interest.' Her blush went a shade deeper.

Inuyasha prepared for the inevitable sit, but try as he might, he just couldn't take his eyes off of her. 'Good think my demon side is already a little weaker, otherwise I don't think I'd be able to control my urges to take her in my arms and say and do what I've wanted to for so long…wait a minute. Why hasn't she sat me yet?'

'Why won't he look away? I would sit him, to save my reputation, but he's already got enough to be mad at me about.'

"Umm…Inuyasha…" she began easing toward her pajamas. "Could you um…stop staring at me like that?" she requested, blushing again. 'If I didn't now any better I'd say that was lust in his eyes,' she mused to herself.

'But lust doesn't mean love.'

'Well, at least he finds me attractive.'

Inuyasha was right in from of her in the blink of an eye. His beautiful amber eyes bored deep into hers, almost into her very soul. She shivered, partially from his closeness and facial expression, but also because it was rather drafty with the door open like that, since she was still naked and wet from her bath.

"Inuyasha what's gotten into you?"

It was taking every ounce of his control. 'Baka, don't make an even bigger fool of yourself.' He finally broke her gaze, a slight tint of pink on his cheeks. "Get dressed, there's some things we need to talk about."

He left as quickly as he had come, leaving one very confused Kagome in his wake. She stared blinking after him. She slipped into her PJs, realizing how skimpy they were. She hadn't expected him to come for her this time, and the weather was rather warm since it was almost summer. She didn't know if you could call them pajamas actually. The bottoms were _little_ more that blue boy cut underwear and the top was a white spaghetti strap; not exactly the best choices.

'Some good could come of it though,' a voice echoed inside her head, causing her to blush at the thought. She was still a little chilly. Worried that the hanyou might notice certain _indicators _of that fact, she jogged in place for a few moments. Satisfied she was no longer cold, she tentatively entered her room, where Inuyasha sat waiting cross-legged on her bed.

"About time, wench," he barked without even looking her direction.

"Sorry I umm…couldn't find a towel."

He turned to look at her, barely keeping his jaw from dropping to the floor at the sight of her. "You call those pajamas!" 'Actually, I rather like those compared to what she normally sleeps in. No way she's bringing those back to my time though; not with that pervert monk running around.'

Kagome blushed, "Well, I wasn't exactly expecting you and it is rather warm out."

Just then the air conditioner clicked on, sending another shiver through her body.

"Then why are you so cold?" He smirked.

She blushed an ever deeper red, putting Inuyasha's Fire Rat to shame, fearing what had alerted him of her coldness. She lunged for the nearest blanket, wrapped it around her shoulders, and settled into her desk chair.

Inuyasha was confused as to what had caused her to blush. He looked her over and came to a realization as his eyes passed over her chest, causing him to blush slightly, just before she darted after the blanket. He was rather disappointed when she sat so far away from him.

The room fell into a suffocating silence. Inuyasha was trying to figure out how to start.

"You said we needed to talk about something…I'm guessing what happened between Kikyo and I?"

Inuyasha winced at the sadness and regret in her voice as she said the second part.

"Well, that's part of it."

"I guess you already know what happened from Kikyo."

"Yeah, for the most part. We talked about some other things, too." He was oblivious to how that sounded.

"Oh…well, I guess I'll make this easy for you then. I know you love Kikyo. I know she's better and prettier than me. I know you're going to go to hell with her and the only thing keeping you from it is that we have to find all the Jewel Shards. I also know that this is probably the last straw and we won't be able to continue on our travels together anymore. Don't worry about the Jewel, Kikyo can help you finish it." She took the shards from around her neck and held them out for Inuyasha to take.

But he just sat there, stupidly blinking at her with mouth agape and ears laid back against his head. He finally got up off the bed and walked over to her. His outstretched hand inched closer, but passed by the little bottle the shards were contained in and instead landed softly on Kagome's shoulder.

"Why would you say something so stupid?"

"It's not stupid. You're stupid if you don't recognize it as the truth."

"Baka, Kikyo may be better at using her powers, but she's not prettier than you. I don't want Kikyo to help me find Jewel Shards, I want you…erm, and the rest of the gang to help. Oh and Jewel Shards aren't keeping me from going to hell with Kikyo cause I'm not going at all…well, at least not with her. Besides you can't leave. You promised to stay by my side until I didn't let you anymore, remember?"

Kagome gasped, "Really!" She replayed their conversation in her head. 'He thinks I'm pretty! And he doesn't want me to leave.' She blushed. 'Wait a minute. He never said he didn't love her.'

"What about love? Do you still love her, Inuyasha?" Fearing his answer she held her breath.

Inuyasha stared into her yes. "No, Kagome. I've never really loved Kikyo like that. I loved her as someone who found me when I really needed a friend, someone who understood me. I feel a responsibility for her, but that's all. I've never felt like that about her."

"But…"

"Shhh." He hushed her voice, placing an index finger over her lips. "Kagome, Kikyo and I talked about a lot of things today; our past, present, and futures. We've both come to realize a lot of things. She's released me from my promise, if I wish it so. She said her soul is in peace and she wants me to live a happy life."

"Really? But aren't you mad at me for what I did?"

"Well, I'm not happy about it. I dunno what got into you, but I do know why you did it."

"How?"

"I ummm…Well, when I came back from talking with her, I kinda overheard some of the conversation ya'll were having in Kaede's hut."

She thought back to what all she'd said, then blushed. 'Oh no, he didn't. Did he hear me say that I love him?'

"Exactly how much did you hear?"

Now he was blushing. "Not that much…really."

'Oh yeah. He totally heard.' She panicked and decided the best approach was anger. She gave him a shove backwards as she bellowed, "You mean to tell me you were eavesdropping!"

The hanyou had instinctively grabbed her arm to try to keep from falling. Not a good idea; they both tumbled to the floor.

"Listen here, baka. Don't you EVER eavesdrop on me again!"

'Why is Inuyasha blushing?' She realized the compromising position she was in. She'd known she was pinning him down, trying to reinforce her point. What she hadn't noticed was that she was _straddling_ him. She blushed profusely before leaping to the safety of her bed.

'Damn good thing my demon blood's weaker for sure. No doubt about it, it would have taken over because of the submissive position she'd had me in. I wouldn't have hesitated before returning the favor to her, had it been a different phase of the moon cycle.' He smirked to himself at the idea of having Kagome pinned to the floor.

A/N: Ooh, Inuyasha's being a naughty puppy!


	4. What's With These Two?

**A/N: I just started a new story called Rebels. It's an AU, so if you like those and have the time go check it out. I personally haven't seen a story of the same plot-line yet, but that doesn't mean there isn't one out there.**

**I've been trying to post this for three days, but there were issues with the document uploader. The lack of chapter updates has nothing to do with the following.**

**I'm very disappointed in the lack of reviews. Over 145 people have stuck with me through Ch. 3, yet only ten reviews. I don't care if you don't think I want to hear what you have to say. I really need some feedback and to be perfectly honest I'm getting rather discouraged. I'm taking the silence as being the same as saying you don't like it. If you do like it then prove me wrong and write me a review, if you don't like it tell me why. I'm not going to hold my story hostage for more reviews, so don't worry, I do this for my own pleasure, not to please anyone. I do enjoy knowing that others enjoy what I write and feedback would make me feel more inspired to continue. I also want to know what I'm doing wrong so I can become a better writer.To those who have taken a couple minutes to review, thank you. Sorry for my review rant, I'm just a bit flustered. On to the story!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, but if I did the first thing I would do would be to pet his ears.**

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Inuyasha woke in a tree, a soft breeze swaying the locks of his hair. The sun was in the process of rising, sending fingers of light across the terrain caressing some objects while passing others by. Inuyasha couldn't help but smile. Then he realized he wasn't smiling because of the beautiful morning, it was because he wasn't alone. He looked down to find Kagome snuggled against his chest, comfortably snoozing, with the top half of his Fire Rat wrapped around her, held in place by his arms.

'How'd we get like this?'

**_----------Flashback from Inuyasha's POV-----------_**

_There was a long awkward silence after the intimate position they'd accidentally landed in. Inuyasha finally broke it by asking, "Is it alright if we go back tomorrow?"_

_Kagome replied with an agreeing nod before largely overdoing a yawn._

"_I'm sooooo tired. I'm gonna go get some sleep."_

_With that she crawled under the covers and turned off the light, back facing Inuyasha. Inuyasha gave in and settled himself by the window, but sleep didn't come easily for the hanyou. Kagome's delectable scent continuously found its way to his nose, penetrating to its core, as Inuyasha couldn't help but watch her delicate figure rise and fall slowly with her lethargic breathing._

_He finally gave up and leapt out the window and into a nearby tree where he proceeded to burrow down in a notch where branches met._

_He slept off and on until he heard a rustle down below. He recognized the scent as Kagome's._

"_Hey, Inuyasha," she called up to him._

"_Yeah."_

"_I can't sleep. Do you mind if I um…come up there with you?"_

"_Keh. Do what ever you want, wench."_

"_Can you give me a lift?"_

_He jumped down beside her, secretly thrilled that his harsh response so undeserving of her understanding hadn't caused her to change her mind. He scooped her up in his arms and leapt back to his perch. They settled in, quite content, until Kagome shivered again. He took off his haori and wrapped it around her. Their breathing rhythms and heart beats fell into sink as they slowly dozed off together._

**_----------End Flashback---------_**

Inuyasha sighed and once again looked down at the girl sleeping contently in his arms.

'Oh, Kagome, I want to tell you how I feel so bad, but I'm afraid.'

Kagome stirred slightly and opened her eyes. She was somewhat confused by her surroundings and tension filled her body, but as the sleepy fog in her mind began to clear, she remembered where she was, how she'd gotten there…and whose arms she'd slept in; her muscles relaxed again. She snuggled against him, shivering a little so she'd have an excuse. She wasn't ready leave the comfort of his arms just yet.

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"Well, I can't feel Inuyasha's demonic presence anymore. Let's take that as a sign that he's went to see Kagome" Miroku informed Sango after she woke up.

"I can't smell him either," Shippo piped in, wanting to sound useful.

"Well, let's hope that's where he's gone. Where's Kaede-sama?" Sango stretched, then rubbed Kilala's stomach.

"She did not inform us of her plans."

"Oh, that's strange."

"Hey guys," interrupted the young fox demon. "Can we go wait for Kagome by the well?"

"No, Shippo. It'd be best to give them some space." Miroku patted the young fox on the head and settled down to meditate.

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Inuyasha sat there for as long as possible until he started to grow restless. Finally he couldn't stand it any longer.

"Kagome?"

"Yeah?" she muttered, barely able to keep the disappointment of him interrupting the moment from appearing in her voice.

"How long before you'll be ready?"

"Ready for what?" Her brows furrowed in utter confusion, not having a clue as to what on earth he was talking about.

"Ready to go back through the well, of course."

She heard a slight 'you're stupid' tone in his last response, but she let it go. 'Back to the same old thing I see.' His overall tone was actually gentler than usual, though.

"Hmm…well, I've got to pack, I'm sure you want to eat before we go, and I kind of wanted to relax a little first."

"Don't even try to tell me you need a bath because I know for a _fact_ you already had one last night." His voice was a little sterner, but a playful tone hid underneath it.

Kagome whipped her head around so they were face to face. "Inuyasha!" Kagome half whimpered in exasperation as a blush crept over her cheeks. "You aren't going to mention what happened last night to Miroku are you?"

Inuyasha had a blush to match Kagome's. "Keh. Like I would give that monk the satisfaction of knowing that. Not to mention the questions and teasing we would get."

"Ok. I was just making sure." She was secretly planning to spill everything to Sango the next hot springs they ran across, but then that was to be expected and was entirely different. After all, _she_ had been the one seen naked. Besides, Sango wouldn't take it like Miroku would. "Stupid pervert."

"What! It's not like I knew you were naked in there! It was an accident." Inuyasha defended.

"Oh, did I say that out loud? Sorry. I was actually referring to Miroku."

"Oh."

"But that doesn't mean it doesn't apply to you, too."

"What the hell's that supposed to mean, wench?"

"Well, it's not like you tried very hard to look away! You just stood there like an idiot gawking at me."

"I told you it was an accident! And I wasn't _gawking_, I was just surprised that's all." This was followed by a humph accompanied by Inuyasha tersely removing his arms from around Kagome and angrily shoving them in his oversized sleeves.

"You better feel lucky I'm up in this tree with you otherwise you would have been eating dirt long ago!"

"Fine. You want outta the damn tree?"

She gave no response, merely crossing her arms and leaning as far away from him as the situation would allow. She stared angrily in the distance, stealing a glare his direction every once in a while.

Inuyasha, meanwhile, was having a great deal of trouble trying to keep his scowl from becoming replaced by laughter. He finally gave up on the struggle and settled for a compromise. He allowed one corner of his mouth to lift up, turning it into a crooked smirk. 'God she's beautiful when she's angry.'

She stole another glower his way only to find his face now wore a half-way smile. 'That lopsided smirk of his is just _so_ cute. Oh, it's so hard to stay mad at him when he looks like that. The ears are a nice touch, too.' She involuntarily sighed. 'Why do we always end up fighting? This morning had been so perfect, waking up in Inuyasha's arms like that.

"I guess we better get down so I can pack." He scooped her up, without so much as a word, and jumped straight to the ground, setting her down lightly. They walked back to the house in a very awkward silence, neither know exactly what to say and being too busy contemplating the events of the last twenty-four hours.

Inuyasha followed Kagome through the back door and into the kitchen.

"You want anything to eat?" She already knew the answer as well as what he would want.

"Sure. Got any ramen?"

Kagome sighed, grabbed a pot, and put it on the stove with some water to boil. She also grabbed a couple of ramen containers from a shelf in the pantry, which she noticed was _completely_ devoted to ramen. 'Gotta love ya, mom.' She thought to herself.

She set the containers on the counter to wait for the water to boil. She busily began preparing her own breakfast, a little more traditional than the hanyou's, consisting of an omelet, toast, bacon, and orange juice. She had just gotten the various ingredients to their proper cooking places when the ramen water started to boil. She finished preparing it, then sat it down in front of a salivating Inuyasha, who immediately began devouring it.

She finished making her own breakfast then sat down at the table across from Inuyasha to enjoy it. He'd already downed all of his by now.

"You never answered me. When'll you be ready?"

"I don't know exactly, ok. It shouldn't be too long."

"How come you ain't trying to run off to that 'skool' thing like usual?"

"For one it's Sunday so it's closed. But I wouldn't have gone even if it was open. I'm too happy that everything's alright and I still get to come to the Feudal Era."

"Keh. We'll be back by dark though right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Nothin important. Tonight's the new moon is all."

"Oh, I forgot about that. Don't worry we'll be back in plenty of time."

"Who said I was worried?"

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Two hours later a very frazzled Kagome and a very frustrated hanyou jumped out of the well with an overly stuffed yellow back pack.

Inuyasha somewhat gently set Kagome on the ground and slung the back pack over his shoulder. "I still don't see why it took you this damn long, woman."

"Well, maybe if you hadn't asked me every five seconds if I was ready yet it wouldn't have taken so long. Dragging me off before I was ready and causing us to fight for fifteen minutes didn't exactly help me get ready quicker either, you know."

"Keh."

"Does that 'word', if you can call it that, actually mean something? Or do you just say it to piss everybody else off!" Inuyasha's ears instinctively laid back. Kagome hardly ever cussed.

"It means somethin'," he defended, then rather quietly added. "Though it is rather good for pissing you off."

She growled in a human manner and stormed off towards the village, muttering things only barely audible to the hanyou's sensitive hearing.

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**A/N: Though the flashback is from Inuyasha's point of view (meaning we only saw things he experienced and how he saw things, not Kagome's personal thoughts and feelings), it was in third person not in first person because I chose to write it that way. I just wanted to clear up any confusion about that.**


	5. What's Wrong with Kagome?

**Sorry for the delay, I got a little wrapped up in my other story. Thanks to those who have reviewed! I won't be able to update for a couple of weeks because I'm going to vacation and won't have a computer. I'll try to work on the next chapter as much as possible.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own them…you know the drill.**

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It was now just after nightfall. Inuyasha had been perched in his favorite spot high up in the Goshinboku ever since he and Kagome had returned from her era. He'd decided it would be best to give her time to cool off before he approached her again, not particularly in the mood for a 'sit' session.

Inuyasha took one last look up at the twinkling stars above before his human self began his slow decent to the ground. He jumped off the last branch and landed gracefully despite his 'weakness' as he called it. He turned to head back to the village only to crash into Kagome, sending both to the ground in a crumpled heap.

"Hey, watch where you're going, you jerk!" Kagome yelled as she tried to untangle herself from Inuyasha.

"It's not like I did it on purpose, wench! What the hell are you doing here anyways?" With one swift motion Inuyasha removed himself from the pile, leaving Kagome in an ungraceful position. She stood up and brushed herself off as he did the same.

"Hmph. _I _was coming to tell _you_ that you shouldn't be out her by yourself tonight because it's too dangerous," she said while crossing her arms and looking away in contempt.

"Keh. You don't have to worry about me, I can take care of myself. I just didn't feel like having you sit me a hundred times." He fully expected her to shout that dreadful word at him now though. He waited, prepared for the sudden tug on his neck before he slammed down into the ground, leaving a crater in his wake. Moments passed, but it never came.

"Kagome?" he timidly asked, unsure of what she was thinking.

"Let's just get back to the village before someone sees you. You don't want everyone finding out your secret, do you?" She turned rather abruptly and stalked off to the village, not saying another word. Inuyasha followed and quickly caught up with her, matching his pace with her own.

"Sorry." Kagome's human ears had barely heard him because Inuyasha had mumbled it so quietly.

"What for?" she inquired coolly, even though his apology had caught her off guard.

"For yelling at you at the well and making you mad." He always got soft on his human night.

"It's okay, Inuyasha. I'm sorry, too. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that."

They walked the rest of the way to Kaede's hut in comfortable silence. They arrived to find their traveling companions sound asleep scattered in various places around the floor of the hut. Inuyasha stepped over Shippo, who was already settled in sound asleep inside Kagome's sleeping bag, and sank into his usual corner. Kagome slipped soundlessly in beside Shippo, who snuggled into her warmth, still sound asleep.

"Goodnight Inuyasha," she whispered softly.

The last thing she heard before she drifted off into a peaceful sleep with a smile on her face was, "Goodnight Kagome."

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_The group sat lazily around the campfire; the human members grateful that their weary feet finally got a chance to rest and the hanyou complaining about how week humans are. Kagome was leaning over the fire, preparing ramen in hopes that it would shut Inuyasha up. Inuyasha's ears flicked suddenly, not that any of his companions noticed. He shot out of the tree to stand by Kagome._

"_Inuyasha? What's going on?"_

_Before he had a chance to answer there was a rustling in the bushes. A girl who resembled Kagome dressed in red and white miko garb stepped out into the clearing, bow held in a threatening manner. "Inuyasha, it is time. We must go now."_

"_What the hell? You said I didn't have to do that anymore for your soul to rest in peace!"_

"_You will join me in hell Inuyasha! I love you and I know you love me too!"_

_A wind started swirling around Kikyo, whipping her normally orderly hair around in all directions. Inuyasha began sliding towards her, being pulled in by the wind. Kagome did the only thing she could think of; she latched onto his wrist with all her strength, straining to pull him out of Kikyo's grasp. He started slipping from her grip, the winds refusing to claim her too, in fact seeming to push her further away. Tears welled in her eyes and she watched her beloved being drug away, Kagome and Inuyasha's outstretched hands, just out of each other's reach. She looked up at Kikyo with pleading eyes, planning on begging her not to take away her beloved. Kagome's expression turned to pure horror when she saw that Naraku now stood where Kikyo had been, the winds she had been using to draw Inuyasha to her replaced by his extending limbs. She let out a scream of pure horror and despair._

Kagome shot up into a sitting position in a cold sweat, the tears in her dream now streaming down her face. Inuyasha was crouched beside her with his ears flattened back against his head, eyes filled with worry. Kagome took in the sight of him, then scanned the rest of the hut. Everyone was as they should be, lightly bathed in the pale light from the breaking dawn.

"Oh thank goodness!" was all she mustered before she leapt at a startled hanyou and fiercely embraced him. Her antics had succeeded in waking the rest of the hut's occupants who were now staring at them with very perplexed looks on their faces. Inuyasha, who could feel their eyes on them, glared at them over Kagome's shoulder. Their companions suddenly managed to find things like the ceiling or their feet very interesting. Sango, in particular, decided that her Hiraikotsu was in desperate need of attention.

"It's alright Kagome. You were just having a bad dream." He rubbed her back soothingly as her sobs became less violent. "What were you dreaming about anyways?"

"Um…it's nothing important really. It was just a dream right?"

"Kagome…tell me what your dream was about _now_."

"Fine. If you must know it was about…Algebra. I had a nightmare that I failed my test." There was a pause, then…

"Stop lying." This caused Kagome to sit back to stare at the hanyou in wonder. "Come on, you should know by now I can tell when you're lying. Besides, you said my name a few times, so I know I was in your dream."

This got Miroku's attention. "Yes, Lady Kagome. Please inform us of what your dream entailed. I'm sure we would love to know what had you calling Inuyasha's name last night." All this was said with one of his perverted grins.

"Monk…" Sango fumed. She nailed him over the head with her Hiraikotsu, sending him down for the count.

"Um…" She didn't want to tell him the whole dream, so she told as much of the truth as she dared. "Well, I dreamt that I was losing you and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop it."

"Don't be stupid Kagome. I'm not going anywhere." All she could do was nod in reply. She was too afraid she'd start crying again. After she was completely calm Inuyasha released his hold on her and went to lean against the wall of the hut. He wasn't one to endure too much physical contact, always afraid it'd give too much away.

Silence filled the hut for moments to follow. Kagome utilized the quiet to replay the nightmare over and over again in her head. Why was she so worried?

'It was only a dream, right?' she questioned to herself. 'Then why is something nagging in the back of my mind, trying to convince me otherwise?' She sighed. That dream had seemed too realistic for comfort.

She was startled from her thoughts as Inuyasha spoke up, his usual self. "We better get going to find more Jewel Shards."

The group silently complied as they began to gather their things and Kaede prepared breakfast. Once it was ready they sat down to some unknown substance the old priestess had prepared for them. After they finished, they said their goodbyes and set off on another leg of their journey on the hunt for the shards of the Shikon no Tama.

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It was midday and Kagome was still riding on Inuyasha's back, while Sango, Miroku, and Shippo flew on Kilala. Kagome was extremely bored, having not sensed any shards, and the rest of her comrades having made no attempt at having a conversation.

"Hey Inuya-" Her words were cut off as a sharp pain filled her head and she clutched at her temples, praying for it to stop.

The removal of her arms from around Inuyasha's neck had thrown them slightly off balance and he had to work hard to keep her from falling to the ground. He set her down as gently as possible before frantically asking, "Kagome, what's wrong?" He leaned over her, extremely concerned by her sudden change. He heard Kilala land near by and the others running over to where he and Kagome now were.

"Inuyasha, what's wrong with Lady Kagome?"

"I dunno monk. We were just running and mid-word she grabbed her head and almost fell off." He then turned his attention back to Kagome, who was still writhing with the pain of her headache, her eyes squeezed tightly shut in her discomfort. "Kagome, you have to tell me what's wrong."

Her response was broken and not very helpful. "Inu…yasha…It…hurts…so bad." Then as if someone had flipped a switch, the pain slowly subsided to a dull throbbing. She wretched an eye open, then the other one.

"Kagome?" Sango's worried voice asked.

Kagome sat up very slowly.

"Kagome, what just happened?" This time it was Inuyasha who spoke.

"I…I don't know. One minute I was perfectly fine about to ask you if we could stop for lunch, the next I had a splitting headache."

"Inuyasha, we should stop for a while and make sure Kagome is well."

"I know that monk. What did ya think, I was just gonna keep going?"

"I'm alright, really. Let's just stop for lunch, then we can keep looking for shards." Kagome tried to stand up to get some aspirin from her bag, but noticed things were a little fuzzy and the ground not as still as it was supposed to be. She gathered her bearings before slowly making her way to her pack, praying she didn't stumble too much. She didn't want to worry her friends.

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The rest of the day's travels had gone on without a hitch. Kagome still felt a little dizzy every now and then, but she kept it to herself. The journey was very uneventful, Kagome having not sensed any jewels shards. They hadn't even run across any demons just to use up some of their pent up energy on. At dusk, when they decided it was time to call it a day, Miroku had been unable to procure them a room via his usual methods due to the fact that the village swore up and down they had a live-in exorcist and assuring the 'concerned monk' that their town was free of demons and evil spirits.

They were now gathered around a fire in the middle of clearing near the village. Random 'ninja snacks' were strewn amongst the dejected group members, a few Ramen containers thrown in there, too. Each dolefully ate their futuristic meal in silence, except for the slurping noises Inuyasha made while eating his Ramen and the crinkling of food bags.

"Hey Kagome…" Inuyasha started, but was interrupted as he slurped another mouthful of Ramen. "You haven't been…" slurp, "…feeling bad…" slurp, "…since your headache…" slurp, "…have you?" He paused to look at her and wait for her answer, mainly because his ramen container was now empty.

Kagome replied cautiously, "Umm…not really, why?"

"'Cause if you have and you've been keeping it from me, I'll be pissed."

"Don't worry so much, I'm fine." She finished off her bag of chips then looked for an escape route. "Hey Sango, I bet there's a hot springs near by since we're so close to that village. Wanna take a bath?"

Her friend looked up from the food she'd been engrossed in. "Sure," she answered merrily, glad to have something to do. They gathered up their necessary items and promptly set off in search of some hot springs.

The guys watched them leave and sat in the brooding silence for a few more minutes.

Shippo crawled into Kagome's sleeping back while disdainfully addressing the remainder of the group, "Ya'll are boring. I'm going to bed. Let's go Kilala." Kilala curled up next to Shippo, letting out a soft and content mew as she did so.

"Keh. Good riddence, twirp."

"Be nice to me or I'll tell Kagome!" he whined.

"Whatever."

There was a long silence during which the kit's breathing slowed, signaling that he was now asleep.

"So, Inuyasha. Tell me. How did you manage to convince young Kagome to come back this time?" Miroku asked, finally satisfied that he and Inuyasha could talk freely.

Inuyasha snapped back, "Keh. 'S none of your business, monk."

"Relax, Inuyasha. I was merely curious, but based on your reaction I am now _sure_ that something of interest happened."

"It was _nothing_. Just talked, is all."

"Oh, come on Inuyasha, you can tell me."

"If you want to live, then you better drop it." To add to the affect Inuyasha raised one clawed hand in a menacing manner. Miroku decided it would be in his best interest to drop it for now, but he would find out sooner or later.

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Sango and Kagome were thoroughly enjoying themselves soaking in the hot springs.

"So Kagome, why'd you ask me to take a bath? Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to be here, but didn't you just take one while you were at home?"

Kagome blushed a little, remembering what had happened. Sango didn't miss a thing. "Umm…I did, I just wanted to-"

"Tell me about something that happened while you two were gone?" Sango somewhat finished for her.

Kagome blushed a deeper shade, knowing that her friend could read her so well. "Well, that's part of it, but also it was just so boring back there."

"Yeah, I'm glad to get away too. So what did you want to tell me and what had you blushing so madly when I mentioned you taking a bath?"

"Okay…So when I got home I was beating myself up for being so stupid, but when I looked around for my family they weren't there. I found a note saying they'd be gone for the next two weeks. Anyways, I ate and then decided to take a bath 'cause I looked awful. I had just finished my bath and was looking for a towel when all of a sudden Inuyasha burst through the door and I was still totally naked!"

"Oh my gosh, Inuyasha saw you naked again? You'd think he'd learn after the first time they walked in on us bathing…unless of course he doesn't want to learn," Sango added with a sly smile.

"Sango!" Kagome exclaimed, shocked by her friend's forwardness. "I can't believe you said something like that! You make him sound like Miroku…though he actually might be a little more like him than we thought."

"Oh really? Please, do tell."

"Okay, so anyways, Inuyasha walked in, so naturally I screamed and tried to cover myself. I didn't want to sit him though because after all I'd just made a mess out of things and I was so shocked that he had even come. Not to mention I figured it was an accident anyways. He had a look of absolute fear on his face at first, I guess he thought I'd sit him twenty thousand times like last time, but then when I didn't, his expression changed…his eyes sorta glazed over, almost lustful. Kinda like the look Miroku gets just after he's stroked your butt and you hit him. Anyways, I expected him to look away after a second, but I just kept waiting and he kept on starin'. I still didn't want to sit him in fear of making him madder at me. So I finally settled on telling him to stop staring at me and slowly making my way towards my pajamas.

"Then all of a sudden he was right in front of me, with the glazed over look still on his face. His eyes were boring into mine. It was kind of scary how penetrating his gaze was. So I asked him, 'What's gotten into you?' That broke his trance cause he looked away like he was embarrassed. Then he has the gall to say, 'Get dressed, there's some things we need to talk about' without so much as an apology or an explanation, leaving me there clueless."

"Ooh, sounds like someone's in love with Kagome!" Sango cooed. "Not that we didn't already know that."

"Sango, just 'cause he was staring at me doesn't mean he loves me. It just means that I was visually appealing to him."

"Oh, come on. We've been trying to tell you for months that Inuyasha's in love with you. When will you get it through that thick scull of yours?"

"And I've been trying to tell _you_ that he _doesn't_ love me."

"Well, you can deny it all you want, but finish your story."

"Fine. So I got dressed and went to my room. Oh, yeah, I almost forgot; the pajamas I had picked out were pretty skimpy 'cause I wasn't expecting anyone. So when I walked in Inuyasha's eyes almost popped out of his head and he was like, 'You call those pajamas?' It was kind of funny. But then I got cold and the top I had on was white so…um I'll let you figure it out. It was _so _embarrassing."

"Wow…a _lot_ happened while you were gone. So, what else?"

Kagome told her all about what Inuyasha said he and Kikyo had talked about.

"So he didn't say he loves you?"

"No, but I'm pretty sure he overheard me telling y'all that I love him when we were in the hut. I didn't want him to ask me about it so I pretended to get mad at him for eavesdropping. I yelled at him and shoved him away, but when I did he grabbed my arm to keep from falling. Then the _most_ embarrassing thing _ever_ happened. We both toppled to the ground and I landed on top of him, straddling him! It was _so_ bad. I didn't even realize so I just kept on yelling at him until I noticed he was blushing."

She waited for Sango to interject something, but was only met by expectant silence so she continued. "That was pretty much the end of that cause he ran off to the tree outside my window. I tried to go to sleep, but I just couldn't, so I went out to see him. I told him I couldn't sleep and asked if I could sleep up in the tree with him. He gave his usual 'indifferent' response, but brought me up there anyways. I ended up sleeping his lap with his arms wrapped around me. It was so nice."

"Oh Kagome, that's great!"

"Yeah, the next morning was pretty pleasant too…at first. I was talking about what all I had to do to get ready when Inuyasha said something perverted."

"Inuyasha…really? What'd he say?"

"'Don't even try to tell me you need a bath because I know for a _fact_ you already had one last night.' I know it's not _that _bad, but it's just the way he said it. Anyways, I asked him if he was gonna tell Miroku and he said no. I started thinking about how I was going to tell you everything the first hot springs we found because I knew you wouldn't take it like Miroku would. I called Miroku a pervert out loud on accident. Inuyasha thought I was talking about him, even though it still applied to him. The day kind of went downhill from there."

"Well, it certainly seems like y'all had an eventful night…wish I could say the same."

"Nothing good happen with Miroku while we were away?"

"I'm sure he tried to grope me a few times, but nothing unusual happened."

"Well, he'll come around eventually."

"Yeah, we better be heading back though. Otherwise the guys will come looking for us."

"You're probably right."

Kagome and Sango reluctantly dried off and dressed themselves. They headed towards camp, talking about meaningless things along the way. When they arrived at their clearing, they saw Shippo and Kilala curled up on Kagome's sleeping bag, but Kilala got up once she smelt Kagome. The girls said good night to everyone before settling in to sleep and Miroku and Inuyasha did the same.

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Kagome woke up in a cold sweat, eyes brimming with tears. Once again, Inuyasha was worriedly watching over her, wondering what it was that troubled her this time. He wrapped her up in his arms and held her tight. That always seemed to sooth her.

"You alright Kagome?"

She shivered against his chest and huddled closer. "Ye-yeah. I'll be okay in a minute…it was just another nightmare," she studdered, not sounding very convinced. She'd had that same awful nightmare again; the same one from last night. What did it mean?

"You sure? You don't look alright."

"I'm still just a little shaken up is all. No worries."

He held her for a few more minutes until she finally calmed. Her breathing was getting heavier and she was slightly slumped against him. She was almost asleep. Inuyasha began to slowly lay her down, when a tiny voice stopped him.

"Inuyasha?" Kagome half-mumbled, eyes still closed.

"Yes, Kagome."

She opened her eyes now to look at him, as if hoping they would aid her in her request. "I don't want to be alone. Can we sleep in the tree, like we did in my era?" Her cheeks had just a slight tint of pink. Miroku cracked one eye open slightly, though it went unnoticed by the pair. It was closed again within a moment.

'So that's what they were doing,' he thought to himself, a perverted smirk on his lips.

Inuyasha merely stared down at the girl in his arms, before finally replying, "Sure."

He scooped her up and jumped high into a tree on the edge of the clearing. He got them settled, making sure Kagome was comfortable, and placed his haori over them. He thought she'd drifted off to sleep, but alas he was mistaken.

"Hey Inuyasha?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks."

"For what?"

"This…"

"Goodnight Kagome."

"Goodnight Inuyasha." This time she really did fall asleep, without any bad dreams too.

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Kagome was having a wonderful dream involving her and Inuyasha professing their love for one another, when suddenly something didn't feel quite right. Another spasm of pain pulled her completely from her dream and into awareness.

"Inuyasha," she moaned, hoping he would know what was wrong.

"Kagome, what's wrong?" he questioned, concern dripping from his voice.

"My chest…" Inuyasha's eyes grew wide and he sweat dropped slightly. "…it hurts." He quickly snapped out of it. He gently scooped her up and jumped out of the tree, carefully placing her on her bed roll. He woke the others.

"I think it would be best for us to return to Kaede's," Miroku wisely suggested.

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**This chapter isn't the best, but I wanted to update before I left. Depending on the reviews I get I might fix it up a bit later on.**


	6. The Trouble with a Miko

**A/N: Guys you have no idea how incredibly sorry I am that it's taken me this long to update. I know everyone always makes excuses but here are some of the factors. I'm a junior in high school and am taking 4 AP (Advanced Placement) classes. They're college level classes and take up most of my supposed "free time" during the week. Now that doesn't account for weekends, I realize that, but I'm just usually so into relaxing I just don't feel like writing. On top of that I'm a beta reader for a fellow writer. Anyways I'm going to try to make amends for all that, but please bear with me. Updates will probably not happen super often. Thanks to all of my wonderful reviewers, I really appreciate it. **

**Disclaimer: For what seems like the millionth time I don't own Inuyasha or his fellow anime characters, heck I don't even own any of his merchandise. sobs uncontrollably Ahem…now to the story-sorry if anyone fretted over Kagome.**

**Last time with the cliff-hanger:**

Kagome was having a wonderful dream involving her and Inuyasha professing their love for one another, when suddenly something didn't feel quite right. Another spasm of pain pulled her completely from her dream and into awareness.

"Inuyasha," she moaned, hoping he would know what was wrong.

"Kagome, what's wrong?" he questioned, concern dripping from his voice.

"My chest…" Inuyasha's eyes grew wide and he sweat dropped slightly. "…it hurts." He quickly snapped out of it. He gently scooped her up and jumped out of the tree, carefully placing her on her bed roll. He woke the others.

"I think it would be best for us to return to Kaede's," Miroku wisely suggested.

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After running the whole way back to the village carrying an unconscious Kagome on his back, Inuyasha could finally see Kaede's hut. Miroku, Sango, and Shippo followed, now about an hour or so behind him, on Kilala, who was unable to keep up with the worried half-demon's pace. Inuyasha barged through the entrance to Kaede's hut, without so much as a word, and gently lay Kagome down on a bedroll.

He turned to face Kaede, "Hey old woman, Kago…" The rest of his sentence trailed off as he realized she wasn't even in her hut. He opened the flap covering the doorway to go find her, when the woman in question was revealed to be standing just outside.

"Inuyasha, I thought that was you, but ye were in such a hurry I could not be sure. Have the others returned as well?" She carried with her a basket of fresh-picked herbs, obviously the reason for her absence.

"Something's wrong with Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted rather impatiently at her.

Her face grew more serious as she gently pushed past him and made her way over to Kagome. Kneeling beside her, she addressed the hanyou, "What seems to be ailing her?"

"Well, yesterday she got a headache so bad she collapsed from it, but the stupid wench said she was fine. Then this morning she woke up saying her chest hurt." He plopped down cross-legged on the opposite side of Kagome, looking at her with worry-filled eyes.

"Is there anything else?" Kaede prodded while she inspected Kagome.

Inuyasha retorted in his usual sarcastic manner, "Isn't that enough?" but he reluctantly added, the concern returning to his voice, "She's been having nightmares almost every night lately."

"Hmm…I see."

"So, what's wrong with her, old woman?"

Despite his disrespectful term, not to mention the fact that he was older than she was, she pondered the problem for a few minutes before assuring him, "These are simply symptoms resulting from something that is common among strong mikos. Kagome will be just fine-"

Inuyasha blew up. "What?!?!" Don't get him wrong, he was very happy she was alright, but after worrying about her so much only to find out it wasn't anything major was just too much for the poor guy.

"Inuyasha calm down; ye did not let me finish. She will be just fine _as long as_ I am allowed to further her training. Unless she learns how to unleash her true spiritual powers to their full potential, she will only get worse. I will wait for the others to arrive and Kagome to awaken before I go into further detail. I do not wish to have to explain this multiple times."

Not wanting a griping hanyou moping about her hut, Kaede served him a bowl of stew to keep him busy for a while. He slurped it down before returning his watchful eyes to Kagome's still form. Kaede passed the time busying herself with whatever she could, hoping the others would arrive soon and Kagome would wake up. As if on cue, Kilala landed outside the hut and the other group members rushed inside to check on their beloved friend.

Shippo bounded over to his adopted mother, examining her closely; Sango stood beside her, looking troubled by her friend's condition; Miroku observed from afar, but was the only one to actually voice the question the three new arrivals were wondering.

"Lady Kaede, will Kagome be alright?"

"Yes child, Kagome will be fine. I shall explain everything to ye, once young Kagome awakens. In the mean while, won't ye have some stew?"

"Yes, that would be most appreciated, Lady Kaede."

The old priestess served up three additional bowls, delivered them to the proper people and gave Inuyasha seconds. All were hungrily devouring the delicious meal until a faint stirring caught their attention. All eyes turned to Kagome as they expectantly waited for her to open her eyes. Instead, something quite startling happened.

"Inu…yasha," Kagome muttered, still apparently asleep, "you're so warm." She rolled onto her side, before falling silent again. Everyone in the room sweat-dropped, with Inuyasha blushing in addition. Miroku had one of his perverted grins plastered on his face, once the initial shock had passed.

"So, Inuyasha-"

"Shuddup Monk, it's not what you think."

Miroku replied, mock hurt filling his voice, "Why Inuyasha, I can't believe you think so lowly of me."

"Keh, whatever."

Kagome stirred once again, this time going unnoticed by the others. She opened her eyes only to see her four friends hovering over her and bickering…as usual.

"I was simply wondering-"

"Can it, monk." The heads of onlookers to the verbal spat looked back and forth between the two, failing to notice their newly awakened friend.

"Um…guys?" Kagome weekly attempted to get their attention.

"Inuyasha, why are you so afraid of me asking? Is it because there's something you don't want me to find out?" Miroku wore a knowing smirk.

Sango attempted to end it before things escalated out of control. "Houshi, I think it best you stop before Inuyasha really gets angry."

"Guys…" Kagome drug out, a little louder this time, now supporting herself on her elbows.

"Why Inuyasha, I'm sure what ever happened between you and Kagome that you're trying so hard to hide, was completely natural." Both Kagome and Inuyasha's cheeks were graced with a slight blush at his comment before…

**Whack**

Miroku fell over unconscious from Inuyasha's attack. "You should have listened to Sango," Shippo admonished, even though Miroku could no longer hear him.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome had finally regained her ability to speak at a higher volume and was relieved to see she was at long last able to gain their attention.

All eyes returned to her, save for the monk's, which had a starry look to them as he lay on the floor.

Inuyasha's eyes, which had been filled with rage towards Miroku, softened as they looked down to Kagome. She noted that they were filled with relief, but still held worry in them.

"Kagome-chan, you're awake!!!" Sango squealed as she glomped her best friend.

"Kagome!" Shippo ran over and joined her. "We were worried about you. I'm so glad you're okay!"

Kagome silently returned the hugs to them, before asking the question she'd been wondering ever since she'd woken up. "What happened?"

"You mean you don't remember?" Inuyasha spoke up.

"No…not really."

"Figures."

Kagome glared at him before turning to Sango and asking sweetly, "Sango, would you mind telling me what happened this morning?"

"Sure Kagome. Inuyasha woke all of us up saying that something was wrong with you and Miroku suggested we bring you back to Kaede's so she could treat you. Inuyasha ran you back; I think you've been here for about an hour now. The rest of us just got here a couple of minutes ago. I'm so relieved to know you're alright!" Upon the completion of her recap of the day's events, Sango once again threw herself at Kagome in a fierce hug, practically preventing her from breathing.

"Sango…can't breathe," Kagome choked out. Okay so scratch that, it really _did_ prevent her from being able to breathe.

"We are _all_ relieved to see that you are well, Lady Kagome."

"Thanks guys. I'm sorry I made you worry," Miroku piped in, returning from his unconscious state.

"Kagome, there are reasons why ye have felt the things ye have been feeling of late." Kagome looked to Kaede, who she'd failed to notice was even there up until now.

"There are?"

"Yes, a miko's strength and powers come from her mind, heart, and soul. Your powers, Kagome, are far greater than I originally thought. Because ye have received little proper training, your powers have not been used to their fullest. The pent up spiritual energy has become too much for your body to take so the physical components of your priestess powers have felt the consequences."

Miroku, as usual, just had to get his two cents in. "Hmm…this is most intriguing."

Kaede glanced his way before continuing, "Inuyasha told me about what ye have been experiencing of late. The headache was your mind component, your chest pain from you heart component, and the nightmares could be any combination of the three. We'll have to discuss their content to know for sure. Sometimes priestesses even receive premonitions in the form of dreams."

All the rest had been accepted calmly by Kagome, but the last thing Kaede said made her tense up.

"Did you say premonition?"

"Yes, my child, but-"

Kagome began to freak out at the possibility. She probably would have been less apt to jump to conclusions had she not been under so much emotional and physical stress.

"No, they can't be!" She withdrew slightly from the group. "I won't let them be." She tucked herself into a ball as Inuyasha reached for her. "It's just not fair!" She screamed the last part as the broke down into hysterical tears.

Inuyasha couldn't take it anymore; he scooped her up, turned to the others, and said "We'll be back." Then he was gone out the door.

**A/N: Sorry to end it here, but I've had most of this chapter written for months now. I've been incredibly busy and just couldn't exactly decide how I wanted to make this end. It's finally posted and my writing inspiration has returned for this story and a couple of new ones, so look out for those. Really sorry about everything again and I will be trying VERY hard to update way more often.**


	7. The Telling of a Dream

**A/N: Well, I've had school for a few weeks now and I try to write every time I get the chance. Now I have to rather successful stories going and I'm trying to be fair to both of them, which is why I wouldn't let myself do another chapter for my latest story until I wrote one for this one. I'll try to update this one again soon, but bear with me ) Thanks to all my awesome reviewers! Most of you show great compassion and I only got one threat glares evilly. Hope you all continue to read my story!**

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Inuyasha leapt off toward the Goshinboku with Kagome in his arms. She clutched to his chest like there was no tomorrow, weeping into his haori. He jumped to the highest branch that would hold them before settling the two of them in the crook of a branch in the same position they'd slept in the last few times.

He didn't say anything; he just held her close. She continued sobbing into his chest for a long time, before it became only silent tears streaming down her face. She looked up at him with damp eyes and a stained face.

"Please don't cry anymore, Kagome. You know I can't stand tears," he gently pleaded, as soothingly as he could.

It sort of had the opposite effect though, for she started crying harder once again. Inuyasha's face acquired a dismayed expression as a sweat drop appeared on the side of his head. 'That was supposed to make her _stop_ crying…not make things worse.'

"I'm sorry! I dunno what's wrong with me," Kagome sniffled between outbursts of crying.

"I know what's wrong with you," Inuyasha said as he held her closer. "You were fine until Kaede said that these nightmares of yours might be premonitions. You're going to tell me what you've been dreaming about right now, Kagome."

"Please don't make me say it; it'll only make it seem more real."

"I don't care. Whatever it is, you can tell me. I'll protect you, Kagome, like I always have."

"I don't know if you'll be able to protect me from this," she replied solemnly.

"If it turns out to be a premonition, then knowing what it is would help us keep it from happening. I'm not letting you leave until you tell me what's been bothering you," he countered leaving no room for argument.

Kagome gazed out at the lush landscape she'd grown so accustomed to; more a home to her now than her family shrine. She gathered her resolve as best she could before turning to face Inuyasha. He couldn't help but notice that she wouldn't look him in the eye.

"I've been having the same…nightmare, every night. Everything starts off alright; it's just you, me, and the others at camp, like any other night. You're always the first one to notice something's wrong." She glanced briefly at his face, before averting her gaze.

The strain of sadness returned into Kagome's voice, and she looked as though she might cry again. "Then Kikyo comes. She starts trying to pull you into Hell with her again, like that one time not long after she was first revived, only this time you don't really want to go. I grab onto you, to try and keep you from getting pulled in, but I'm not strong enough to save you." Tears were now rolling down Kagome's cheeks.

"Then I see that it's not really Kikyo at all, but Naraku with his heinous tentacles, trying to take you away from us!" She buried her face in Inuyasha's haori, not only to hide her sobs, but also so she didn't have to meet his eyes.

"Kagome, it's just a dream. That'll never happen. You know I'd never let Naraku hurt any of us."

She shot up, staring him in the eye for the first time that night. Her eyes, though filled with tears, were also filled with a mixture of hurt and a little anger. "You don't understand! You don't know how real it feels; how much it hurts to dream that dream every night, over and over again!" She broke down into full blown sobbing again and there was nothing Inuyasha could do or say that could stop it.

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"Do you think Kagome's going to be alright, Miroku? I mean she seemed pretty shaken up when they left," Sango inquired with concern, looking toward the doorway as if waiting for them to come back any minute.

"I suspect that with time she'll calm down, until then all we can do is sit wait for them to return. If anyone can sooth Kagome's troubles, then it is probably Inuyasha." Miroku subtly scooted closer to Sango during his ramblings.

Sango didn't seem to take notice as she tucked her knees against her chest and laid her head to rest on them. "I guess you're right, but I can't help but worry about her. I don't think I've ever seen her _that_ upset. Considering all we've been through, whatever she's been dreaming about must be pretty bad."

The two were now sitting far closer together than they had been. Shippo, knowing what was coming, scurried off to a safer distance. Sango's head snapped up as she felt something oh too familiar on her butt. She fumed before slapping Miroku harshly across the cheek. He fell over on his side, still cross-legged. Sango's figure loomed over him, "Honestly Hoshi, at a time like this?!?!"

Miroku defended as best he could with, "Dear Sango, don't be angry. I was just trying to lighten the mood."

"Lighten the mood! Lighten the mood?!?! You honestly think that would work!!!"

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In the Goshinboku, the yelling of Miroku and Sango faintly reached Inuyasha's ears. "I can't believe those two are at it again already," he muttered, somewhat on accident.

Kagome broke off from her crying jag long enough to 'ask' him what was going on. "Hm?" she mumbled.

"What? Oh it's nothing. Miroku just managed to get Sango agitated again. Nothing unusual."

"Oh," she sniveled. Suddenly sobering up, "Your hearing is absolutely amazing, you know it?" she more stated that asked as she reached up to gently graze one of his ears with her middle finger.

Even though she pretty much just stated the obvious, the way she said it and the way she brushed his ear made Inuyasha blush like crazy. "K-Kagome?"

She reached her hand back down and pulled it to her chest, almost protectively. "I'm sorry, Inuyasha." She laid her head on his chest again. Just as he was about to speak she did instead. "I don't think I can talk about this anymore tonight. Do you think we can just stay up here?"

"Sure. Whatever you want."

They sat in silence among the limbs of that sacred tree; the very tree that had in fact brought them together in the first place and one of the few things that connected their two differing worlds. The boy, not completely demon, but not human either; the girl, his most loyal companion and one of the few to wholly accept him. She slept peacefully that night, while he watched over her, the slightest of blushes still visible on his face.

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**A/N: Before you get upset I know this chapter's rather short, but think of it as sort of a filler. I got to writing again but then I hit this wonderful stopping point and felt if I kept writing it wouldn't flow as well. Anyways, at least you know I'm still writing and you got an update quicker. I will start trying to make longer chapters again, I promise. Oh also I got a bit poetic at the end there, sorry if it didn't strike your fancy. It just sorta came out. Please continue to review! **


	8. The Training of a Miko and Lovers Past

**A/N: Here's the next chapter, so sorry it took this long to get it out. I have no excuse except to say that school drained me of all my creative writing ability. Thanks for all the great reviews. One in particular I want to point out was from Silver-Star-124. I want to thank her for her honesty. She pointed out that Inuyasha has been rather OOC throughout the story, and she's absolutely right. For those who have been wondering, I have intentionally made him that way because I feel that the emotional quality of this story demands this change in him. After a few more chapters things should be settled down and he will be returning to his old self. Also upon reviewing the whole story, I was slightly disgusted by my portrayal of Kagome and Inuyasha in the first two chapters. I can only blame it on my inexperience, as this was my first fanfic. Also this story was initially intended to go a **_**completely**_** different direction and only last a few chapters. Anyways, on with the show!**

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Back in Kaede's hut, Sango awoke with a yawn and a deep stretch, stirring Kilala from her slumber as well. 

"Ah, good to see you awake on this beautiful morning Sango." Said girl turned toward the voice and saw, through sleep-bleared eyes, Miroku directing his trademark smile at her.

"Good morning to you, too, Houshi-san," she replied, her formality letting him know she was in no mood to be charmed. Kilala rubbed against her leg as she stretched, starting from her shoulders all the way down to her twin tails. Sango absentmindedly pet her down the length of her body a few times before taking inventory of the hut. Kaede didn't seem to be present, which wasn't abnormal; she was probably off on some early morning priestess duties. Inuyasha wasn't in his usual spot by the door, not that that was particularly uncommon either; he often rose before the rest of them. Then she turned to Shippo who was still sleeping soundly curled up on Kagome's sleeping bag…with no Kagome in sight.

"Miroku?"

"Yes, my dear Sango?"

"Where are Kagome and Inuyasha?" Sango inquired.

"Ah, so then you have forgotten?" Miroku asked with a certain gleam in his. "They never came back last night."

"Do you think they're okay?" she wondered, genuine concern evident in her voice. "Should we go to look for them?"

"No, I think they're _just_ fine," Miroku assured her with that perverted little smirk on his face; it always signaled trouble coming. Sango also didn't like the tone of his voice. "In fact…I'd say they're _better_ than fine…"

"Miroku…" Sango warned, her right hand curling into a fist. Neither human noticed the stirring coming from Kagome's sleeping bag, the kit being woken up from all the noise.

"Just think of all the glorious things they could have been doing all night," he continued without a trace of fear.

"Houshi…" she growled, her fist shaking threateningly.

Miroku visibly flinched, 'That always precedes Sango's wrath…ah well, it's worth it.' Then his perverted demeanor was back. "You know we really should follow their example, Sango dear."

Sango's hand swooped in and connected harshly with his skull. "Stupid lecher!"

Shippo sighed and muttered, "Baka" before dozing back off.

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Inuyasha sat fidgeting among the branches of the Goshinboku, the sleeping girl still curled up in his lap. He sighed for about the millionth time that morning as he once again looked at the sun's place in the sky.

'Is she _ever_ gonna get up??' he mentally groaned. 'Daybreak was a couple of hours ago!' He was beginning to get extremely restless.

Kagome stirred slightly and Inuyasha breathed a sigh of relief, but to his annoyance she was still asleep. He growled audibly this time, closing his eyes. The desire to move suddenly became too much, so he relented and scooped up the slumbering girl into his arms. Leaping from the canopy, he landed as smoothly as possible. Kagome shifted in his arms, burying her face further into his chest and clutching his haori lightly with one hand. Inuyasha, who had looked down to study her actions, blushed slightly and returned his eyes to the path ahead.

As they neared Kaede's hut, Kagome moved again, but this time gold eyes met with droopy chocolate ones. "Thanks, Inuyasha," Kagome muttered before closing her eyes once more.

"Keh," was his reply, but her breathing had slowed, an indication that she had already drifted off to sleep again.

He ducked through the door to Kaede's hut where he was met with several quizzical stares. He glared at them all, a silent warning, as he walked over and placed Kagome on her sleeping bag. He sniffed the air as his eyes gave Kagome a quick once over. When he turned back around, he was displeased to find everyone still looking at him expectantly.

He growled and startled the humans of the room when he snapped, "What?!?!"

"We were just wondering where you two have been…all…night…long," Miroku innocently cooed, pausing slightly between each of the last three words.

Inuyasha growled fiercely again before striking the monk roughly on the head.

With stars in his eyes, Miroku futilely tried to explain. "I was only thinking of Kagome's well being, honest."

"She's fine!" Inuyasha barked irritably. With that he stormed out of the hut and into the surrounding forest. Sniffing the air again, he continued deeper into the trees.

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"You know you really shouldn't test him like that," Sango chastised. "One day you're going to push him too far and Kami help you when you do because no one else will."

"Sango, your words…they sting!" Miroku whined.

"Can it, Monk."

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Inuyasha continued to follow his nose, but soon found it was no longer necessary because the presence of the numerous serpent-like, white soul-snatching demons told him he had nearly reached his destination. As he stepped into a small clearing, he was rewarded with Kikyo, her back facing him.

"Kikyo," Inuyasha began, unsure of many things; this was the first time they had spoken since that day…the day she set him free. Questions buzzed around his head, most of which he thought he knew the answer to, but couldn't be completely sure.

Kikyo glanced over her shoulder at him before fully turning herself around to face him. "I am glad to see you came," she vocalized sincerely. "I was unsure as to whether or not you would answer my call."

His eyes softened at her vulnerability. 'Is this the same person?' he wondered. "I'll still come when you call, Kikyo. You outta know that," he confirmed before walking to stand in front of her. "We're still allies, if nothing else. We'll need to be strong if we're gonna defeat Naraku."

"Yes, you are correct. Do you know why I've summoned you, Inuyasha?" Kikyo queried, returning back to her normal, distant self.

"I'm guessing about what's been happening to Kagome."

"Right again. This was a most unexpected turn of events. How does the girl fare?" she inquired, though her face remained impassive.

Unsure of what information she was looking for, he answered to the best of his abilities, "Better than she was, I guess. Last night was the first time she didn't have a nightmare."

"So then, am I to presume that Kaede has not yet begun her training?"

"No, not yet."

"Well, the sooner the better. Naraku has been on the move again, as to what his plans are, I know not. Kagome is stronger than what I first anticipated, even up until recently. The girl's powers will only increase as her training develops. Once trained, she will be of great use in the battle against Naraku, a fact that will surely become known to him shortly. As you are aware, miko training is not all that she is lacking. You must not allow her to fall into his hands, the results could be disastrous. However, I fear you will not be enough to protect the girl; she must be taught to protect herself as well."

"Hai," Inuyasha nodded the short affirmation. "Did you wanna come back with me? You might be a big help."

"No, my appearance will only serve to distract the girl. I will come later on in her training," with that she turned away.

"Kikyo, wait!" Inuyasha suddenly commanded as he approached her. She stopped and looked back at him, waiting for him to continue. "I never thanked you, for what you did for me a few days ago, so…arigatou, Kikyo," he stumbled with his words, but solidified their meaning with an embrace, somehow different than the ones they used to share. She turned in his hold, returning the gesture. After a moment they parted, the soul-demons twisting themselves around her, a sad smile on her face as they lifted her away. Inuyasha stared on for a moment, before turning and starting back to Kaede's.

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Kaede made her way back to her hut, a bit tired from the healing she had just performed, but knowing all to well that Kagome's very fate may lay in the elderly miko's own hands and that her training was of utmost importance. "Where to begin…" she pondered out loud to herself as she trekked through the village. Had she not been so highly respected, the few villagers witnessing her musings would have undoubtedly believed her to be senile; fortunately, however, that was not the case.

She assessed the sun's location, shading her tired eyes with a wrinkled hand, and deemed it to be approximately nine o'clock. 'Good. There is still more than enough time to begin Kagome's training.'

Kaede peeled back the mat covering the entrance to her hut to find a fuming Sango and a yawning Kagome groggily rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Miroku was sitting farther than usual from Sango and the kitsune was huddled up by Kagome for protection.

"Good to see ye all are awake," Kaede greeted cheerfully.

"Ohayou, Kaede-senpai," Kagome replied as best she could.

"Child, ye should eat some breakfast quickly, we have training to begin."

Kagome seemed to awaken more upon that information, quickly agreeing with, "Hai!" before rummaging around her pack for a fast bite to eat.

While Kagome was eating, Kaede had gone to look for a few things. She still had not returned by the time Kagome was through, so she took it upon herself to change out of her pajamas and into her usual school uniform. When she emerged from the back portion of the hut, Kaede was waiting for her. The older woman looked Kagome over before shaking her head. She handed Kagome a package and instructed, "Change into this child; I think it will be better suited for ye training." Kagome took the package willingly, despite her guess as to what lay inside. She returned to the back room and upon opening the parcel, her assumptions were proved correct. Held within its wrappings was a pair of red hakamas, accompanied by a white inner and outer haori. She sighed before reluctantly putting on the outfit. When the long white ribbon fell from her obi, she almost considered not wearing it, before settling for a braid with the ribbon keeping it in place. Satisfied with the personal touch she'd added, she returned to the main room of the hut and awaited Kaede's approval.

Kaede looked up from a colorful drawing Shippo had been showing her to take in Kagome's appearance. "That'll do child," she commented. The old woman slowly stood up, motioning Kagome to follow her as she headed toward the door. Kagome, however, suddenly seemed to notice Inuyasha's lack of presence and inquired the others about it.

"He wandered off a little while ago," Sango informed her before adding, "fuming at Miroku."

"Oh, ok," Kagome acknowledged, mildly concerned. She grabbed her bow and arrows and proceeded in following Kaede as they silently made their way to a meadow in a small clearing near the village.

"You're friends have told me ye have become quite skilled at archery and indeed you have, as I have witnessed myself on a few occasions," Kaede praised upon reaching their destination. Kagome blushed lightly at the compliment. "I want ye to shoot a normal arrow and then one infused with your purifying powers," Kaede instructed. She meticulously gazed around the area before continuing, "at that tree," while simultaneously pointing at the desired tree.

Kagome nodded her understanding then drew and arrow from her quiver. She notched it in her bow before taking aim at the designated tree. It took off with a twang resonating from the bow string and hit dead center of the tree. She glanced over at Kaede, waiting for some sort of commentary or instruction, but received none, so she notched a second arrow. This time as she took aim, she willed her purifying powers to flow into the arrow before releasing it. A similar twang as before sounded, as well as a thunk when the arrow buried its head into the tree's trunk slightly to the left and down from the other arrow, the magic dispersing from it having no evil to purify.

"Excellent form; that of a true natural," Kaede approved with a smile. "Ye display a wonderful discrimination between using your powers and not and have great aim as well. Ye are quite the archer, child." Her smile widened at Kagome's blush. "That is not all we are to work on, however. What other ways have ye been able to unleash your powers?"

Kagome thought it over for a minute, resting her left hand on her chin, her elbow sitting on her right arm which was crossed over her chest, and gazing off into the distance. After a moment she responded, "Well, there've been a few times like what happened with Mistress Centipede – you know, purifying powers in my hands – and of course sensing and purifying sacred jewel shards. Oh and then there was the time with Tsubaki when I deflected her curse with my bow. I've been able to break through barriers a few times too with my sacred arrows. As far as I can remember, those are the only significant things I've been able to do."

Kaede gave her an appraising look for a moment before saying, "Let us go prepare lunch, child. I am making a stew that requires simmering." Kagome looked at her questioningly before she continued, "We shall resume ye training tomorrow morning. Ye shall wear miko robes during our sessions." And with that she walked away towards her hut. Kagome collected the spent arrows, and seeing that they were still usable returned them to her quiver, before following the old priestess.

* * *

**A/N: Yup, that's right folks…Kikyo's back, but don't worry, she's a good guy in this one, remember? Phew, man I sure lucked out. I was this close holds up index finger and thumb really close together to rewriting this whole thing, but fortunately I now know where I'm going with this. See this originally was gonna be just a one shot, ya know one of those random musings we all have every once in a while, but then everyone liked it so much and the way I wrote it made it work out to where I could do a full blown story. Unfortunately things didn't really end up going where I thought I wanted them to, and upon thinking over my story a few days ago I realized I had no idea where to take it. I also am not too pleased with a few things, as I mentioned in the first note, but am willing to overlook them seeing as how this was my first story after all and my story "One Hell of A Surprise" has kind of become my pride and joy. Have no fear though, this story is on a redefined track and I have no intentions whatsoever of neglecting it…more than the poor thing already has been. Anywho, now that you're all thoroughly sick of hearing me talk…write, whatever (that is if any of you are still even reading this blasted thing) I'll stop talking. Oh, also I apologize if this chapter was a little dull; it gets better again, I promise! This is sort of a transitional chapter. Hope you enjoyed it and please review!**

**Senpai- honorific used for one's mentor  
****Ohayou- good morning**


	9. The Training Continues

**A/N: **_**Italics **_**during part of the story will be inter-contemplations of the characters. I'm trying a different method of annotating thoughts.**

* * *

The gang had just finished eating lunch, and Inuyasha had not yet reappeared. Kagome was seriously beginning to worry, but had to forgo any thoughts in his direction in order to properly concentrate on her afternoon training session with Kaede. The old and young priestesses returned to the clearing from before to continue the practice.

"Fully mastering your powers means fully mastering yourself, Kagome. Ye must always be in control of your emotions and never let others get the better of ye. This will be an ongoing aspect of your training and the most difficult part to master."

"Hai, Kaede-sempai," Kagome responded.

"Now, for today's training, ye will try to extend your powers. Ye are quite skilled at infusing it into arrows, simply placing it in another object is no different. For instance, try this rock." Kaede placed a rock into Kagome's hand.

Kagome concentrated on sending her spiritual powers into the rock, but nothing seemed to happen.

"Nay child, do not _force_ it. Let the power_ flow_ from ye; _share_ it with the rock, do not _give_ it to it."

Kagome nodded and then closed her eyes; after a moment the rock glowed with her energy.

"Excellent, now drop the rock and do the exact same thing."

Kagome did as told and felt her body tingle after a moment. She could feel as her own power seeped through her skin.

"That is enough for today," Kaede concluded. "We do not wish to tire your powers all at once. We shall meditate for a time now, to center our spiritual energy."

Kaede sat on the ground, legs crossed, and place her hands in the meditative mudra. She looked at Kagome, expecting her to do so as well. It took Kagome a moment to realize this before she mimicked Kaede's position. "Let us meditate child." Kaede's eyelids drooped until her eyes were almost closed, but closer inspection showed a sliver of an eye peeping through. As her breathing evened, Kagome followed suit.

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Meanwhile Inuyasha sat in the tree he'd been reflecting in for some time now. He and Kikyo had parted several hours ago, but he found he couldn't return to the village just yet, too much was on his mind. Things had shifted so suddenly; the definition of too many things in his life had changed, and he was having trouble keeping up. How would things be between him and Kikyo now? Now that that door had closed, what would happen with him and Kagome? Would it even change anything? All these questions kept racing around his head, and he didn't have answers for any of them. Then there was the matter of Kagome's powers. Sure now they knew what had been the cause of her ailments, but there was still the matter of her training and then what was to happen with Naraku. When had life gotten so complicated? It used to be so simple back then. He would hunt when he was hungry, kill those who got in his way, and avoid villages at all costs. Of course he was alone then. That's what had changed; he had others to worry about beside himself.

He sighed, running a hand through his unruly mane. What was a hanyou to do? He leapt from the tree and headed toward the village. He could always sort things out later; he had time.

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The world and the sounds of the forest faded out slowly, as though disappearing into a tunnel. Kagome was left with nothing but her own existence, and the feeling, as she thought, was quite strange. _Oh no!_ Things were changing and she was losing her grasp on the abyss she had created. Had the contemplation of the place driven it away? What had she done?! _Come back!_ Then she realized everything looked different. She wasn't seeing the forest as it should be, but there could be no doubt that that's what it was.

A faint blur of pale light—was that the word to describe it; she wasn't sure—surrounded her. A soft, but more noticeable gold stood out next to her. _Could that be Kaede-sama?_ She gasped. _Oh my gosh! I'm seeing auras!_ She had sensed them before, but never to this degree of clarity. _The blur of energy must be the spirits of the trees surrounding the clearing._ Nearby the dull aura of a forest creature moved around. _This is so amazing. I don't think I've ever experienced anything like this! I can't wait to tell Kaede-sama._ She froze in her musings. An aura shown through with such intensity that it worried her; not only that but it was headed their way.

Not far away Inuyasha trudged through the underbrush. He caught Kagome's scent on the breeze and decided to check up on her training. He decided, as he often did, to watch her from afar. As her scent grew stronger he leapt into a tree branch, then another until he could see her.

_It's stopped_. Kagome tuned in on the aura, now so close it almost blinded her. She didn't feel threatened for some reason though. It was almost as if it felt…familiar. _Inuyasha?_ She memorized the crimson energy and opened her eyes slightly. _He's sitting behind me that jerk. Probably thinks he's so smart and I won't know he's there. I'll show him._

_How boring, they're just sitting there. I was hoping for something exciting like spiritual powers in combat. Jeez, she can sit on her ass well enough without needing anymore training on it._ He felt a twinge of guilt with that last silent remark, but chose to ignore it.

Suddenly, Kagome twisted around and looked straight at him. He nearly fell off his branch, she scared…um startled him half to death. Fortunately he threw his weight forward in just enough time, but ended up teetering back and forth before a nice little whispered 'sit' command helped him the rest of the way to the ground.

"Ah ha!" Kagome shouted while pointing her finger accusingly at the flattened Inuyasha. "Caught you spying, did I?"

Inuyasha pulled his head out of the ground. "Damn, wench!" _Damn those miko robes…they always bring up so many old memories._ "I wasn't spying! I just wanted to see what kind of training Kaede-baba had you doing! Stupid training I see. And what the hell did you do that for?"

"It's not stupid! For your information you jerk it's very helpful! I'm sorry that meditating just isn't exciting enough for you, but I happen to have learned a lot!" Kagome threw back.

Inuyasha quipped back just as hotly, "Keh, how can sitting on your ass teach you anything?!?!" _Damn how did this get started?_

"How do you think I knew where you were hiding, stupid?" By this point Kagome was screaming in his face, fists balled up at her sides.

Neither had noticed Kaede rise from the ground, so they were both equally surprised when she interrupted their quarrel. "Children, stop ye fighting. There is obviously no hope for me to return to meditating, but we must finish up our training session, Kagome. Inuyasha, go back to the village and we shall meet you there shortly." Kagome blushed profusely while Inuyasha merely 'keh'd and started to walk away. After making sure he was gone, Kaede chastised Kagome for being so easily drawn in.

"Trust me, child, hard as it may be, if ye can resist Inuyasha's tauntings, ye can surely keep yourself calm through almost anything. Do not forget what I told you would be the hardest part of your training and that ye must practice it all the time."

"Hai, Kaede. Gomen." Kagome bowed twice.

Kaede merely waved her off. "No matter; we have time for now. Onto more important things, so you were able to sense Inuyasha?"

"Yes, Kaede, it was so amazing!" Kagome squealed with excitement before retelling the whole experience.

"This is astonishing progress, Kagome, though I never should have doubted it. My intentions were purely to give you practice in controlling your spiritual powers. It is most unexpected that ye are already capable of tuning into auras on such an advanced degree. Training is most certainly concluded for today; we shall resume at dawn tomorrow morning. For now, let us prepare dinner."

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Inuyasha returned to the hut, grumbling no less, and found Sango working on the Hiraikotsu and Miroku sitting a safe distance away, seemingly meditating. _Jeez, what's up with all these people and their stupid sitting today?! It's like they're fucking _trying_ to piss me off or something! At least the runt's not here to pester me._ As if on cue, said annoying runt appeared at the hut's entrance, a mewing Kirara in tow. Inuyasha groaned. _Just my luck._

Miroku cracked an eye open and Sango paused in her work. "So where have you been all this time, Inuyasha?" Miroku so subtly questioned.

"Keh, like it's any of your damned business, Miroku."

Sango interrupted before the situation took a bad turn. "Have you seen Kagome today?"

"Yeah. She was still training when I saw her a minute ago. The old hag yelled for at me interrupting her training, like it was doing her any good."

"What do you mean?" Miroku asked.

"She was just _meditating_," he said the disdainful word in a mocking tone. "Who the fuck needs that? Kaede should be teaching her something useful, like sending energy balls at people, or how to create a barrier."

"Well, not that someone as dense and restless as yourself would understand, but meditating is a very helpful and soothing experience, especially for those with spiritual or holy powers. Just because you wouldn't be able to sit still long enough for it to have any effect, doesn't mean that others with a hint of patience can't benefit from it." Inuyasha growled and flexed his fingers.

Kagome and Kaede fortunately chose that time to make their appearance, nipping all violent acts about to break out in the bud. Inuyasha glared in their direction, mostly at Kaede for thinking she could just order him around like that. I mean who did she think she was? She was ancient—granted he was older than her, but only in human years—and he was a strong hanyou with demon blood running through his veins. Kagome saw the look, narrowed her eyes, and then turned her head contemptuously in the other direction. Then she left without another word and went into the backroom to change.

_Today is going to be a long day,_ Inuyasha glumly thought. He also decided that catching fish to eat with dinner was a lot better, and safer, than unnecessarily hanging around an angry Kagome, so he left to do just that. When Kagome returned to find him gone, she felt a little guilty for running him off.

Kaede began the dinner preparations while Kagome sat against the wall, a reflective expression adorning her face as she contemplated apologizing to Inuyasha. When he came back a mere twenty minutes later, fish in hand, and only spared her one minute and seemingly indifferent glance, she decided against it. Little did she know, that one secretly calculating look he'd send her was to see if she was still too angry with him to approach her, which he decided she was.

Inuyasha let a deflated sigh escape past his lips. _Women are so damn complicated_. He handed the catch to Kaede to add to her stew before dejectedly taking up residence in his corner of the hut.

The rest of the evening went by in a tense, but thankfully uneventful, atmosphere.

A few hours after sunset, Kaede stood up from the awkward little circle of her adoptive family. "Well, I think I shall get these old bones to bed," she announced to them. "But first, Kagome might I have a word?"

Kagome looked puzzled but regardless she answered, "Of course, Kaede."

The old miko exited the hut without as much as another word or backward glance. Kagome followed in a similar fashion. They headed out of the village, toward the well actually, and Kagome wondered just how far they were going to walk. Her silent question was shortly answered as they arrived in the well clearing, coming to a stop at the well's edge.

"Have a seat please, Kagome," Kaede quietly requested. Kagome of course complied with no question as to why. "I have been wanting to talk to ye about something, but the topic is bound to upset you, so I thought it best to wait a few days. It's about what happened between you and Kikyo a few days ago." Kagome's faced visibly paled at the mention of her most shameful moment and her grip on the lip of the well tightened until her knuckles whitened. "I know this is not a pleasant subject for ye, but please just hear what I have to say." Kagome, who couldn't trust her voice, only nodded.

"Do you remember a when I explained to you the strange things ye have been feeling and that you must learn to control your emotions and powers?" At Kagome's acknowledgement Kaede continued on. "Well, it has everything to do with the exchange between the two of you. The reason you must learn to control your emotions is because strong emotions tend to get exploited to extremes when ye are in such a vulnerable state. The bitterness that you felt toward Kikyo at the time was amplified exponentially due to the turmoil your excess of miko power was and still is creating inside your body. So you see, the fault is not entirely yours."

Kagome, with her head tilted toward the ground, spoke out in a small but sure voice. "It doesn't change what I did. It doesn't change that I tried to do something so terrible, something I never thought I'd be capable of."

"No, it doesn't, but it does make it easier to bear." With that she turned and walked back to the village.

Inuyasha jumped over a few tree branches to scramble out of the old woman's path. Always the epitome of naivety and cowardice of intimacy he thought it better to leave Kagome to herself for the moment and ran off into the forest to do some thinking of his own. Kagome was left to deal with her own problems in solitude and to wallow in the self-pity and punishment of her own regrettable actions. She wasn't sure how long she sat there, but the moon was high up in the night sky before she even thought of heading back.

She was crossing the well clearing when she heard a swoosh and the sound of claws shredding through something. She spun with terror in her eyes, but instead of the demon she'd been expecting to see wanting to rip her to pieces, she only saw Inuyasha—looking about like he wanted to do the same thing—still flexing his fingers from his saving attack.

"You know Kaede taught you all that crap about auras today for a reason. It's so you know what's around you and don't get caught off-guard, especially by such a low-level demon as that one. You're lucky I pay attention otherwise you'd probably have gotten yourself killed by now." At the hurt expression on her face and the tears welling in her eyes that she couldn't hide, he realized the harshness his tone and words had carried just then. He tried to make amends by softening his tone but I was too late. "Ahh, Kagome, please don't cry!" The prospect of tears always made him anxious.

"Well, I'm sorry that I've been such a bother to you. I'll just try to stay out of the way from now on!" Kagome turned and stormed off toward the well, disappearing into even as Inuyasha's voice carried to her ears.

"Kagome…wait!!!" Inuyasha started to chase after her, but then stopped himself. "Dammit. What's the use anyway?" He strode into the forest in the opposite direction.

* * *

**A/N: Well, sorry about the long wait. I had some trouble finding a good place to end this chapter, but I finally figured it out. I'm hoping to update more often. I no longer have a job and school's being kinder to me. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Please review and keep an eye out for an update for **_**One Hell of a Surprise **_**as well as some new stories I've been working on!**


	10. The Formulation of a Plan

**Yes, I am finally back, hopefully to stay. As my writing style has matured in the past four years (the time since my last update), you may notice a lot of changes starting with this chapter. Some of these changes also include fixing some discrepancies (such as now writing 'Kirara' instead of 'Kilala'). I never knew which was the more correct spelling, but recently discovered Kirara is the Japanese spelling and Kilala is the English spelling; so I'll be trying to honor the original as much as possible. Kaede will also not be saying 'ye' anymore as it annoys me. Hope you enjoy the improved quality of life of my writing! It's good to be at it again.**

Kagome woke up the next morning to the smell of cooking food. She was confused when she felt a comfortable mattress under her instead of the ground jabbing her through her sleeping bag. Then she remembered she'd run home in the middle of the night. She felt like such a coward. After everything Kaede had spoken to her about, she just ignored it all and came crying home to safety. She drug her self-loathing body out of bed and headed downstairs to tell her mother she was home for a while. Her family didn't even know she was back yet since she'd gotten in so late and hadn't wanted to wake them. Kagome didn't know exactly when they had returned from visiting her uncle, but it had only been four days since she'd last traveled through the well so they were sure to still be tired from the trip.

When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she poked her head into the kitchen where she found her mother busy stirring something on the stove. "Hey, okaa-san, I'm home," Kagome called out, fully entering the kitchen. Her mother turned to look at her with a surprised expression on her face.

"Kagome, I didn't know you were back. When did you get home?" she asked with happiness as she walked over to welcome her daughter.

"I got in late last night. I didn't want to wake you guys."

Mother's intuition told her that something was upsetting her daughter. "Kagome…what happened?"

Kagome gave her mom a brief review of the recent events and complained about her cowardice.

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the Feudal Era, Inuyasha was sulking around the village. Things just never seemed to go right between him and Kagome. He just couldn't ever say the right thing. He was pacing underneath the God Tree pondering his troubles. "It's not like it's all my fault," he muttered, talking himself into feeling less guilty. "She always overreacts and goes running home. Wench…" He stopped pacing and stared toward the well clearing. Inuyasha heaved a heavy sigh, knowing deep down that he was just trying to make himself feel better and that none of it would change anything.

"How long will you stay away this time, Kagome?" Inuyasha wondered to himself.

* * *

After calming down and eating a hearty breakfast, Kagome and her mother sat down to finish their talk.

"Kagome dear, you know you must return, right? You owe that to Inuyasha, Kaede, and yourself," Kagome's mother began. "You can't just run away every time things get tough. You're such a strong girl. You've already taken on so much, but you must try to make amends and get your emotions and powers under control."

"I know…thanks Mom. I'm going back in a few hours. I'm just going to take a bath and gather some supplies." She got up from the table to walk away only to realize how incredibly self-centered she was being. "Oh, here I am worrying all about my problems and I completely forgot about Uncle Haruo, how is he doing? And what happened anyway? Your note just said he was in the hospital."

Mrs. Higurashi looked up in surprise at the sudden outburst of questions, concern over her daughter ebbing into thoughts about her brother and sister-in-law and all they were going through. Although Haruo was her husband's brother, the families were still very close even though Mr. Higurashi had passed away many years ago. "Oh he's doing just fine now, though things were a little rough there for a while. Haruo had a heart attack." At the look of horror and worry passing across her daughter's face, she quickly added, "but they managed to catch it early on and get him to the hospital. He didn't have to have surgery, but he stayed in the hospital for almost a week waiting for everything to return to normal and for the medicine to break up the clots. He was released a couple of days before we came home. Your aunt's been worried sick ever since of course, but we couldn't stay away any longer. Souta was staying with a friend so he wouldn't miss school and I didn't want to impose on them too much since it seems your uncle is going to be just fine."

Kagome let out a sigh of relief but still felt guilty for some reason. "I just feel bad that I wasn't here…they've always been there for us, especially since Dad isn't with us anymore." She thought about all she missed here while she was in the feudal era. School she could catch up on…hopefully. Her friends…well in all honesty she was closer to her friends in the feudal era anyway; all the petty high school drama paled in comparison to fighting off a hanyou seeking world domination. But her family…that was different. They were the only one she had and even though her feudal era gang was like a second family to her, she couldn't turn her back on her real family. "I think I should go visit him, would you take me to see them Mom?"

Mrs. Higurashi looked at her kind daughter with nothing but love. "Honey, if you're really set on going I'll take you, but I don't think it's the best time. Haruo just got out of the hospital a few days ago and he and Aya are exhausted. I think it's best we let them get things figured out and recuperate before we go see them again." Kagome looked absolutely downfallen, but she understood. "Besides dear, you have your own problems to worry about right now. They may not seem life and death, but they could end up that way if you continue putting them on the back burner. I promise next time you're home and it's convenient we'll go see Haruo and Aya okay?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Next time you talk to them, will you tell them I'm glad everything is okay and that I'll come visit as soon as I can?"

"Of course, now you better run upstairs and start getting ready. You know Inuyasha isn't the most patient," Mrs. Higurashi chastised.

Kagome gave a nod of acknowledgement before dashing off towards the stairs, muttering to herself, "that's the understatement of the year."

* * *

It took three hours before Kagome had finally readied herself to return to the past. She was clean and her mother had replenished her bag's food supply while she was bathing. Her uniform was clean, as was her back up uniform. She also brought with her some pants and a couple of shirts for training, that way she hopefully wouldn't have to wear that priestess garb all the time. Even though she knew things had for the most part been resolved with Kikyo, she still felt weird dressing just like her. Apparently Kagome's reincarnation complex was going to stick around for a while. Finding she had no excuse left to continue her stalling, she headed downstairs kissed her mom, grandpa and Souta goodbye, gave Buyo a good scratch, and made her way out to the well.

* * *

Inuyasha perked up from his mental musings perched in his usual sulking tree. He thought he smelled Kagome's scent, but was unwilling to let himself believe that she had really come back after only one night in her time. Deciding he may as well go find out for himself if he was imagining it or not, he bounded off toward the well clearing just in time to see Kagome flailing about as she not so gracefully ascended from the well. He grabbed her by the back of her shirt and hauled her the rest of the way out and onto safe level ground before she could fall back in and hurt herself.

Her look of slight disdain told him his methods were not exactly appreciated, but when she went to reach for her yellow pack, he simply grabbed it and slung it over without so much as a word. She didn't speak either as she stepped around him and headed off towards the village, him falling into step beside and a little behind her. Neither spoke as they walked but it was not an awkward or angry silence. Both realized they had overreacted last night and were content to be reunited, though neither would say it.

It was almost time for lunch. "Was Kaede mad when she realized I wasn't here for training this morning?" Kagome suddenly inquired, startling Inuyasha out of his silent celebration at not getting yelled at or sat.

Inuyasha eagerly replied trying to be helpful, not even realizing that he was digging his own grave. "Not that I could tell, she probably thought you wanted some time to think after y'alls chat." He missed the narrowing of her eyes, but he did feel the slight flare in her aura, causing him to shift his eyes her direction ever so slowly. '_Ah fuck…I gave myself away again damnit!_' he thought to himself while preparing for the inevitable sit.

Kagome opened her mouth to scream her head off at Inuyasha for being caught eavesdropping again…before she remembered her training. '_Okay Kagome, deep breaths. You can do this; just picture he's not the biggest annoying idiot in the world.'_

"Inuyasha," Kagome began as calmly as she could manage though it sounded forced even to her own ears. "You really must stop spying and eavesdropping. It's very rude and quite frankly I'm growing tired of it. Some things are none of your business!" She couldn't help but to raise her voice on the last part, but she thought she did pretty well over all considering whom she was dealing with. She mentally gave herself a passing grade, though she was definitely far from acing the exercise.

She had certainly shocked Inuyasha. He was standing, almost gawking, about five paces back from her—the distance growing more every step Kagome took towards the village. He finally shook it off and caught up with her muttering what sounded like "Sorry" to Kagome. She couldn't be sure but his slightly downcast eyes confirmed her suspicions. As they finally reached the village, both the half-demon and the priestess could smell the lunch stewing in Kaede's hut wafting their way. They entered the dwelling, finding the monk and demon slayer sitting against the wall while the elder priestess stirred the day's meal. All three turned towards Inuyasha and Kagome in acknowledgement, a bit surprised to see her back so soon and without Inuyasha buried face down in the ground. The kit and Kirara were nowhere to be found, so it could be assumed they were off playing near the village somewhere.

Kaede was the first to speak, "Kagome child, you were not here for training this morning, how do you fare?"

Kagome immediately felt guilty for skipping out on the older woman, though she knew that had not been Kaede's intention. "I'm alright now Kaede-sama. I spoke with my mother about everything going on here and she filled me in on my uncle's situation. It was good to see her."

"I am sorry Kagome, I did not realize a relative of yours was ill?" Kaede almost questioned. Kagome did her best to explain to Kaede and the rest of her friends what had happened to her uncle, trying to use terms familiar to the feudal era. During this lunch was served and after the topic of her uncle was exhausted the group fell into friendly and comfortable chit chat. Sango and Miroku were discussing battle strategy, and the two priestesses were discussing the benefits of aura sensing. Inuyasha was the only one being quiet for once, contemplating all the things that had happened to him recently. He glanced over at Kagome, the focus of all his confusion. He was sure he overheard her saying she loved him that day, which made him want to let her know he cared about her too. He wasn't ready _say_ it yet; he had lived a life full of rejection and people despising him just for being a half-demon. He was just not starting to get used to the idea that not only had Kagome accepted him, but so had their entire pack of friends. He was so good at screwing things up with her that he didn't even want to take the risk. He sighed and once again gave up on the idea. '_Maybe I should ask the monk for advice.' _ As soon as the thought entered Inuyasha's mind he cursed himself. He looked at his perverted friend and did not even want to imagine how shitty things would get if he got the lecher involved.

It seemed everyone had decided lunchtime was over while he was deep in his thoughts. Sango and Miroku were going for a walk and Kagome and Kaede were preparing for the afternoon training session, which left him to fend for himself. He decided he might as well supervise training for the day and found a limb with a good view of the two women, without being too close. He closed his eyes, not quite napping, waiting for something semi-exciting to occur.

Meanwhile down on the ground, Kaede again had Kagome concentrate her miko energy into her hand. It took her a couple of tries, but this time she did not need a medium to help her get focused. "Very good Kagome," Kaede encouraged. "Now let it recede, and try again. It is my desire that by the end of today you will be able to do that instantly and with relative ease."

Kagome nodded in a determined fashion and tried again, concentrating extra hard. It did not seem to do any good however, as the energy came neither easier nor faster, actually taking a few moments longer to come together. "Child, I want you to close your eyes and take a deep breath. Remember the other day when we were meditating? Try to find that same place again and focus on your energy." Kaede knew Kagome had the strength to do anything she put her mind to; it was just a matter of getting her to know and accept her powers. She needed to stop trying to force things and feel them instead.

Kagome did as her mentor told and went inside herself, pushing her normal senses aside to use her spiritual senses. She lost herself in the comforting and hazy blur of the forest before noticing for the first time what could only be her own aura. The last time they meditated she had been so distracted by the newness of the experience and seeing other living creatures through a new light that she had failed to notice herself. She looked at Kaede's golden aura and realized it was much smaller than her own. Kagome's aura radiated brilliantly, almost rivaling the intensity of Inuyasha's. Only hers was a blue so light and bright that it was almost white. Around the very edge shown a faint pink, almost the color of the Shikon no Tama. She felt conceited getting so wrapped up in her aura, but she really could not understand how it had escaped her notice before. Again noticing the golden aura near her, she remembered she was not alone and had a task to complete. She focused on the bright halo around her and willed it to concentrate into her palm. She felt strength surge into that arm, and when she opened her eyes again she saw what could only be depicted as a ball of energy cupped in the palm of her hand. Inuyasha almost fell out of his tree at the sight. Kaede looked down-right impressed, and Kagome…well she was so shocked she lost her focus, and the ball lost its shape and slowly fizzled out.

She turned slowly toward her mentor with wide eyes, "Kaede-sama…that was…I don't even know what to say." Kagome finished sort of lamely.

"I say well done. You must try to do the same thing again. If you can master this, it shall not matter if you are without weapons. You will be able to create your own at will. Do it again child, but try keep its form under your control."

Kagome repeated the process throughout the early part of the afternoon. By mid afternoon she was exhausted both from the mental capacities needed to manipulate spiritual powers and then subsequently for the draining of said powers. She had managed to conjure the energy ball several more times with varying degrees of success maintaining it. Once she had even managed to hold it long enough to lob it towards a tree, but it dissipated mere seconds after leaving her hand. Overall it had become easier to create the ball as the day had gone on, but the problem now would be making it last.

As Kagome panted slightly, Kaede slowly lowered herself to the ground, motioning with her hand for Kagome to mimic her actions. "We will again meditate today. Now that you have learned to concentrate on your own aura, we must not forget there are others out there. For the next hour or so, I want you to focus on the energies you can sense in the forest. Not only will it benefit your senses, it will also allow your spiritual energy to replenish."

* * *

The monk and the slayer strolled casually around the village, mostly just wanting to stretch their legs but also wanting to be able to talk away from Inuyasha's prying ears. "So Houshi-sama, what do you think will happen now that things are settled between Inuyasha and Kikyo?"

Knowing that particular honorific meant Sango was not in the mood to be messed with, he decided he would behave…for the moment. "Dear Sango, it is my hope that Kagome and Inuyasha will finally profess their feelings for each other. However Kagome has been hurt a lot by Kikyo and Inuyasha's prior relationship, so I believe he will have to be the one to bring them together."

"I was afraid you were going to say that. She's so sure he could never return her feelings." The slayer sighed deeply. "They're both blind and stubborn!"

Sensing her frustrations, Miroku decided now was the perfect time to lighten the mood a little bit, even at the risk of a beating. "Well my Sango, we could always set an example for them. Maybe they would take the hint and Inuyasha would ask Lady Kagome to bear him children as I have asked you so many times." Not at all getting the reaction he was expecting, he nearly fell over at her response.

"Miroku…that could work." Was she really considering this? Surely she must be ill.

"Sango, are you aware of what I just proposed?" He just couldn't believe it.

Sango turned full around to face him, "Of course Monk, obviously I'm not talking about that! But think of this, what if we sort of staged becoming closer?" At the glint forming in her companions eyes she decided she better get specific and fast. "Not like that you lecher! Nothing indecent, maybe just the holding of hands here and there, taking walks together like we are now. Kagome and Inuyasha would fill in the rest, it's brilliant!"

Not minding her idea, as he would rather enjoy the opportunities he would undoubtedly find to exploit the situation, this plan was not exactly something Sango would normally do. "Doesn't this plan seem a little underhanded? I mean we would basically be lying to them."

"Not necessarily. We would only lie as minimally as possible, for instance if one of them asks us what's going on we'll just say that we've grown fonder of each other and things like that." The woman was now firmly committed to the idea but had to ensure the monk didn't do anything too stupid. "But under no circumstances are you to say anything that would bring my honor into question is that understood?"

Even though Miroku knew he would at some point probably break this promise to Sango, he agreed anyway to appease her, "Yes of course Sango, but are you sure you'll be able to go through with it?"

"It will be hard keeping this from them, but in the end it is for their own good." Resolved in the plan, the partners in crime made their way back to their unknowing friends.

**Thought I'd create a chance for some Sango/Miroku romance to bloom. Hope you all enjoyed the long over due update! You'll be hearing from me again soon.**


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